RAPID: Formaldehyde Measurements as Tracer of Local Processing of Reactive Volatile Organic Carbon During the Atmospheric Measurements of Oxidants in Summer Study

Harvard University, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

This project supports research that is integral to the summer field campaign that will take place at the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) beginning in July 2016. The objective of the field campaign is to gain a better understanding of reactive chemistry in the atmosphere of a forested environment. This is important for improving predictions of the production of ozone and secondary organic aerosols in the atmosphere, species important for sustaining human health and the environment. The Atmospheric Measurements of Oxidants in Summer (AMOS) campaign includes the study of the oxidative processing rate and oxidation mechanisms of biogenic volatile organic compounds under varying nitrogen oxide concentrations. The proposed research focuses on formaldehyde as a tracer for the oxidation of volatile organic compounds. The project includes the study of formaldehyde emissions from plants using leaf enclosure, measurement of the fluxes of the formaldehyde exchange between the surface and the atmosphere, formaldehyde flux measurements via eddy correlation at the top of the tower and gradient measurements through the canopy, and application of a 1-D box model approach to examine VOC oxidation to investigate whether missing organic peroxy radical sources are correlated with missing formaldehyde sources. The results will contribute to an improved ability to mitigate the anthropogenic effects of emissions on climate, human health, and the environment.