The DiSCPersal model: A simple model for the small-scale atmospheric transport of spheroidal carbonaceous particles (SCPs)

Abstract

Spheroidal carbonaceous particles (SCPs) are atmospherically mobile by-products of anthropogenic, high-temperature fossil fuel combustion. Since they are preserved in many geologic archives across the globe, SCPs have been identified as a potential marker for the onset of the Anthropocene. Our ability to reliably model the atmospheric dispersal of SCPs remains limited to coarse spatial scales (i.e., 10²-10³ km). We address this gap by developing the DiSCPersal model, a multi-iterative and kinematics-based model for dispersal of SCPs at local spatial scales (i.e., 10°-10² km). Although simple and limited by available measurements of SCPs, the model is nonetheless corroborated by empirical data of the spatial distribution of SCPs from Osaka, Japan. We find that particle diameter and injection height are the primary controls of dispersal distance, whereas particle density is of secondary importance. Further, stark differences in the modelled dispersal distances of SCPs between non-point vs. smokestack sources could explain the ambiguity of dispersal distances and the relative magnitude of long-range vs. localized sourcing of SCPs reported in the literature. This research underscores the need to incorporate understanding of the localized dispersal patterns of SCPs when interpreting their preservation in geologic archives. By extension, our findings have implications for the reliability of SCPs as a globally synchronous marker for the onset of the Anthropocene.

Keywords: Anthropocene; Black carbon; Chronostratigraphic marker; Fossil fuels; Industrial pollution; Particulate matter.