Atmospheric aerosols can be emitted directly as particles or formed in the atmosphere from phase transitions of gaseous compounds with low enough vapor pressure. During their lifecycle in the atmosphere, aerosols undergo multiphase changes, altering chemical composition, reactivity, physical and optical properties, ultimately influencing how they impact climate, human health and ecosystems. The understanding of the chemical processes in the atmosphere is crucial to assess these effects. Here we provide a brief overview on relevant aerosol chemical processes and measurement techniques with no claim to completeness and describe the Swiss contribution to the European infrastructure ACTRIS for long-term monitoring and its relevance for the research field.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.2533/chimia.2024.728 | DOI Listing |
Sensors (Basel)
January 2025
European Southern Observatory, Santiago 7630000, Chile.
The most widely used radiance sensor for monitoring Night Sky Brightness (NSB) is the Sky Quality Meter (SQM), making its measurement stability fundamental. A method using the Sun as a calibrator was applied to analyse the quality of the measures recorded in the Veneto Region (Italy) and at La Silla (Chile). The analysis mainly revealed a tendency toward reductions in measured NSB due to both instrument ageing and atmospheric variations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Total Environ
January 2025
CNR-Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research, Rende Division, UNICAL Polifuzionale, Rende 87036, CS, Italy.
This study provides a review of 13 oceanographic campaigns between 2000 and 2017 to measure Hg in the Mediterranean, highlighting major findings from measurement and modelling activities during the Med-Oceanor program. The initial campaigns showed that high concentrations of RGM could be found far from industrial source regions and the observed daily variation in concentration, with peaks at midday and lower concentrations during darkness gave the first indications that photochemically mediated oxidation reactions were producing RGM in the MBL. Later atmospheric chemistry modelling studies showed the feasibility of Hg oxidation by bromine containing oxidants, which are released as a result of the acidification of sea salt aerosols in the Marine Boundary Layer (MBL).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Technol
January 2025
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China.
Chlorine radicals (Cl) are highly reactive and affect the fate of air pollutants. Several field studies in China have revealed elevated levels of daytime molecular chlorine (Cl), which, upon photolysis, release substantial amounts of Cl but are poorly represented in current chemical transport models. Here, we implemented a parametrization for the formation of daytime Cl through the photodissociation of particulate nitrate in acidic environments into a regional model and assessed its impact on coastal air quality during autumn in South China.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Adv
January 2025
PSI Center for Energy and Environmental Sciences, Paul Scherrer Institute, 5232 Villigen, Switzerland.
Glaciers serve as natural archives for reconstructing past changes of atmospheric aerosol concentration and composition. While most ice-core studies have focused on inorganic species, organic compounds, which can constitute up to 90% of the submicrometer aerosol mass, have been largely overlooked. To our knowledge, this study presents the first nontarget screening record of secondary organic aerosol species preserved in a Belukha ice core (Siberia, Russian Federation), ranging from the pre-industrial to the industrial period (1800-1980 CE).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Phys Chem A
January 2025
Institut des Sciences Moléculaires, UMR CNRS 5255, Univ. Bordeaux, Talence cedex F-33405, France.
The hydration mechanism of 3-methyl-1,2,3-butanetricarboxylic acid (MBTCA), a relevant marker of secondary organic aerosol formation from the atmospheric oxidation of α-pinene, has been investigated using the matrix-isolation infrared spectroscopy technique. The experimental results were supported by theoretical calculations. Monomers of MBTCA and heterocomplexes MBTCA-(HO) were identified.
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