Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China
Nitrate is a very important aerosol component, thus elucidation of its characteristics and formation mechanisms is essential and important for effective reduction of aerosol pollution. In this work, highly time-resolved submicron aerosol (PM1) data measured by Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometers (AM...
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doaj-f5c3164f70954ca7b236b508cc38d5bc2020-11-24T20:58:48ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332017-03-01836210.3390/atmos8030062atmos8030062Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in ChinaXinlei Ge0Yanan He1Yele Sun2Jianzhong Xu3Junfeng Wang4Yafei Shen5Mindong Chen6Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (AEMPC), Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology (CIC-AEET), School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaJiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (AEMPC), Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology (CIC-AEET), School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Boundary Layer Physics and Atmospheric Chemistry, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, ChinaJiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (AEMPC), Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology (CIC-AEET), School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaJiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (AEMPC), Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology (CIC-AEET), School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaJiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (AEMPC), Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology (CIC-AEET), School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaNitrate is a very important aerosol component, thus elucidation of its characteristics and formation mechanisms is essential and important for effective reduction of aerosol pollution. In this work, highly time-resolved submicron aerosol (PM1) data measured by Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometers (AMS) in Nanjing, Beijing and Lanzhou during both summer and winter were integrated to investigate the nitrate behaviors in urban China air. Results showed that nitrate occupied 1/8–1/4 of PM1 mass, typically higher than those observed in rural/remote regions. Relative mass fractions of nitrate also varied significantly at different pollution levels. Nitrate mass fractions generally increased with the increase of PM1 loadings during summer, while the contributions during winter increased first and then decreased with the increase of pollution levels. We further propose that there are at least three mechanisms that likely govern the urban nitrate behaviors: Type I—thermodynamics driven, Type II—photochemistry driven, and Type III—planetary boundary layer (PBL) dynamics driven. Analyses of the ammonium-sulfate-nitrate data revealed that ammonium nitrate was able to form before sulfuric acid was fully neutralized in some urban areas. Our findings provide useful insights into the characterization and reduction of fine particulate nitrate pollution.http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/8/3/62fine aerosolsnitrateaerosol mass spectrometerdiurnal variationformation mechanism |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Xinlei Ge Yanan He Yele Sun Jianzhong Xu Junfeng Wang Yafei Shen Mindong Chen |
spellingShingle |
Xinlei Ge Yanan He Yele Sun Jianzhong Xu Junfeng Wang Yafei Shen Mindong Chen Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China Atmosphere fine aerosols nitrate aerosol mass spectrometer diurnal variation formation mechanism |
author_facet |
Xinlei Ge Yanan He Yele Sun Jianzhong Xu Junfeng Wang Yafei Shen Mindong Chen |
author_sort |
Xinlei Ge |
title |
Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China |
title_short |
Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China |
title_full |
Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China |
title_fullStr |
Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China |
title_full_unstemmed |
Characteristics and Formation Mechanisms of Fine Particulate Nitrate in Typical Urban Areas in China |
title_sort |
characteristics and formation mechanisms of fine particulate nitrate in typical urban areas in china |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Atmosphere |
issn |
2073-4433 |
publishDate |
2017-03-01 |
description |
Nitrate is a very important aerosol component, thus elucidation of its characteristics and formation mechanisms is essential and important for effective reduction of aerosol pollution. In this work, highly time-resolved submicron aerosol (PM1) data measured by Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometers (AMS) in Nanjing, Beijing and Lanzhou during both summer and winter were integrated to investigate the nitrate behaviors in urban China air. Results showed that nitrate occupied 1/8–1/4 of PM1 mass, typically higher than those observed in rural/remote regions. Relative mass fractions of nitrate also varied significantly at different pollution levels. Nitrate mass fractions generally increased with the increase of PM1 loadings during summer, while the contributions during winter increased first and then decreased with the increase of pollution levels. We further propose that there are at least three mechanisms that likely govern the urban nitrate behaviors: Type I—thermodynamics driven, Type II—photochemistry driven, and Type III—planetary boundary layer (PBL) dynamics driven. Analyses of the ammonium-sulfate-nitrate data revealed that ammonium nitrate was able to form before sulfuric acid was fully neutralized in some urban areas. Our findings provide useful insights into the characterization and reduction of fine particulate nitrate pollution. |
topic |
fine aerosols nitrate aerosol mass spectrometer diurnal variation formation mechanism |
url |
http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/8/3/62 |
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