Secondary production of organic aerosols from biogenic VOCs over Mt. Fuji, Japan

Environ Sci Technol. 2014;48(15):8491-7. doi: 10.1021/es500794d. Epub 2014 Jul 16.

Abstract

We investigated organic molecular compositions of summertime aerosols collected at the summit of Mt. Fuji (3776 m a.s.l.) in July-August 2009. More than 120 organic species were identified using GC/MS. Concentrations of both primary and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) tracers in whole-day samples were 4-20 times higher than those in nighttime samples, suggesting that valley breeze is an efficient mechanism to uplift the aerosols and precursors from the ground surface to mountaintop in daytime. Using a tracer-based method, we estimated the concentrations of secondary organic carbon (SOC) derived from isoprene, α/β-pinene, and β-caryophyllene to be 2.2-51.2 ngC m(-3) in nighttime and 227-1120 ngC m(-3) during whole-day. These biogenic SOCs correspond to 0.80-31.9% and 26.8-57.4% of aerosol organic carbon in nighttime and whole-day samples, respectively. This study demonstrates that biogenic SOA, which is controlled by the valley breeze, is a significant fraction of free tropospheric aerosols over Mt. Fuji in summer.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aerosols
  • Air Pollutants / analysis*
  • Environmental Monitoring
  • Japan
  • Seasons
  • Terpenes / analysis*

Substances

  • Aerosols
  • Air Pollutants
  • Terpenes