RAPID: Measurements of Aerosol Chemistry During Wintertime High-Ozone Events

University Of Wyoming, Laramie WY

Investigators

Abstract

Ozone mixing ratio exceeds 100 parts per billion multiple times per winter in areas of heavy gas and oil exploration in remote Utah and Wyoming basins, but the exact chemistry that leads to elevated ozone remains unclear. A visible haze consisting principally of organic and, to a lesser extent, nitrate aerosol is formed during these events. This aerosol has significant impacts on the gas-phase chemistry that regulates ozone formation. Aerosol particles play an important role in the oxidized nitrogen budget, formation of nitrous acid, and release of chlorine atoms after particle-phase formation of nitryl chloride from dinitrogen pentoxide and particle-phase chloride. This project aims to study the source, formation mechanism, and impact of aerosol particles formed during wintertime high-ozone events. Aerosol composition will be measured with an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) during a six-week field campaign from mid-January to early March, 2012 titled, "Energy and Environment - Uintah Basin Winter Ozone Study (E&E UBWOS)". The study includes a wide array of instrumentation to measure volatile organic compounds, gas-phase nitrogen oxide species, and oxidants. These gas-phase measurements will add significant context and depth to the AMS measurements of particulate mass and chemistry. Aerosol formed during high-ozone events degrades visibility and is a health concern for the people of Utah and Wyoming. The results of E&E UBWOS will be compiled into a final report that will be referenced by the Utah Department of Environmental Quality during future decisions on how to address the ozone and aerosol problems in the region. The data will also be publically available after one year. Data from the AMS will be analyzed by graduate students, presented at national conferences, and written up for publication in relevant journals with graduate student co-authors. Data from this study will be integrated into the atmospheric chemistry course in the Department of Atmospheric Science at the University of Wyoming as a locally relevant case study. Participation in this study will establish a new relationship between scientists in the department and in the Earth Systems Research Laboratory at NOAA.