Improving the quantification of secondary organic aerosol using a microflow reactor coupled to HPLC-MS and NMR to manufacture ad hoc calibration standards.

Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) is a key uncertainty in quantifying the impact of humans on Earth's climate. SOA is a complex mixture of oxidized organic species, and a fundamental hurdle in determining its composition is the lack of authentic standards for comparison and quantification. Organic synthesis can be used to produce pure standards, but is limited to compounds for which there is a degree of confidence in the proposed structure and can be expensive and time-consuming.

Comparative thermodynamic studies of aqueous glutaric acid, ammonium sulfate and sodium chloride aerosol at high humidity.

Aerosol optical tweezers are used to simultaneously characterize and compare the hygroscopic properties of two aerosol droplets, one containing inorganic and organic solutes and the second, referred to as the control droplet, containing a single inorganic salt. The inorganic solute is either sodium chloride or ammonium sulfate and the organic component is glutaric acid. The time variation in the size of each droplet (3-7 microm in radius) is recorded with 1 s time resolution and with nanometre accuracy.

Iodide accumulation provides kelp with an inorganic antioxidant impacting atmospheric chemistry.

Brown algae of the Laminariales (kelps) are the strongest accumulators of iodine among living organisms. They represent a major pump in the global biogeochemical cycle of iodine and, in particular, the major source of iodocarbons in the coastal atmosphere. Nevertheless, the chemical state and biological significance of accumulated iodine have remained unknown to this date.