| NSF Org: |
AGS Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | February 13, 2009 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | June 24, 2013 |
| Award Number: | 0847793 |
| Award Instrument: | Continuing Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Sylvia Edgerton
sedgerto@nsf.gov (703)292-8522 AGS Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | February 15, 2009 |
| End Date: | January 31, 2015 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $544,940.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $651,618.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2010 = $188,975.00 FY 2011 = $218,312.00 FY 2013 = $128,316.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
3100 MARINE ST Boulder CO US 80309-0001 (303)492-6221 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
3100 MARINE ST Boulder CO US 80309-0001 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): |
Atmospheric Chemistry, Other Global Learning & Trng |
| Primary Program Source: |
01001011DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001314DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01000910DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
Secondary Organic Aerosol (SOA) forms in the atmosphere through chemical reactions of gaseous compounds and comprises a large fraction of the organic aerosol. Observed SOA amounts are one to two orders of magnitude larger than predicted by atmospheric models, leading to the fundamental questions: What are the sources and chemical identities of SOA precursors and how do they form SOA? These questions will be addressed through field studies with instrumentation developed by the principal investigator (PI) and laboratory experiments in simulation chambers. An Airborne Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectrometer (AMAX-DOAS) will be built and used to measure column data for glyoxal (CHOCHO) and other gases, and to constrain their horizontal and vertical distributions in the boundary layer and the free troposphere. An LED-based Cavity Enhanced DOAS (LED-CE-DOAS) will be developed for the sensitive and selective measurement of trace gases. This instrument will be used to measure CHOCHO in laboratory experiments to explore its sources and photochemically-enhanced sink reactions, and to study SOA formation from relevant precursor volatile organic compounds (VOCs) (e.g., isoprene, acetylene, aromatic VOCs).
The project's educational component will consist of enhancing the college readiness of students underrepresented in math and science-based careers. Two fluent Spanish speakers, the PI, and the director of the Science Program at Boulder High School will team up to support students underrepresented in science prior to college, when critical skills needed to succeed in graduate studies - or the lack thereof - can still be identified and corrected. Working relationships with K-12 teachers will also be established. The materials developed will be catalogued in the Digital Library for Earth Science Education (DLESE) and submitted for peer review to the DLESE Community Review System.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Greenhouse gases and aerosols modify the Earth radiation balance. Reactive organic carbon species (lifetime of hours to days) and tropospheric halogens (bromine or iodine) modify the lifetime of greenhouse gases like ozone and methane, and modify aerosols. The sources and sinks of glyoxal and tropospheric halogens are currently not yet well understood. Glyoxal is the smallest a-dicarbonyl, and a precursor to Secondary Organic Aerosol (SOA). This project has developed extremely sensitive optical spectroscopic instruments, i.e., in-situ Cavity Enhanced Differential Optical Spectroscopy (CE-DOAS) and Airborne Multi-AXis DOAS (AMAX-DOAS) to measure glyoxal, bromine monoxide (BrO), and iodine monoxide (IO) at parts per trillion levels (1 pptv = 10-12 volume mixing ratio); methyl glyoxal, nitrogen dioxide, oxygen collision complexes, aerosols and other gases can be measured as well. We have detected for the first time iodine oxide in the tropical free troposphere, and showed that sub-pptv levels of IO are a relevant sink for tropospheric ozone. The DOAS instruments have been deployed from ships and aircraft over oceans, polluted urban, and pristine biogenic environments. We have located a glyoxal source within the sea-surface microlayer over the remote tropical Pacific Ocean that can currently not yet be explained by models, yet is of interest to marine biologists and our understanding of air-sea exchange. Under controlled laboratory conditions we have begun to investigate the source mechanism of glyoxal over oceans, and the SOA sink from multiphase chemistry. Glyoxal SOA is shown to be sensitive to anthropogenic triggers in form of sulfate, ammonia and water. Glyoxal forms SOA as a result of "salting-in", which is a relevant SOA source over the Eastern continental US (responsible for 0.1-0.5 micrograms/m3 organic aerosol). Knowledge about tropospheric halogens and organic carbon is relevant to air quality and climate researchers, as well as the atmospheric mercruy community. Scholarly activities involve STEM activities related to atmospheric chemistry, outreach to communities, and the continued development of the STEM and undergraduate natural sciences curriculum.
Last Modified: 07/31/2015
Modified by: Rainer M Volkamer
