Award Abstract # 2131369
Collaborative Research: Characterizing the Cloud Formation Properties of Secondary Organic Aerosol (SOA) Formed from Aqueous Multiphase Chemical Processes

NSF Org: AGS
Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences
Recipient: TEXAS A & M UNIVERSITY
Initial Amendment Date: August 4, 2021
Latest Amendment Date: May 14, 2024
Award Number: 2131369
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Sylvia Edgerton
sedgerto@nsf.gov
 (703)292-8522
AGS
 Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences
GEO
 Directorate for Geosciences
Start Date: October 1, 2021
End Date: September 30, 2025 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $362,310.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $423,882.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2021 = $362,310.00
FY 2024 = $61,572.00
History of Investigator:
  • Yue Zhang (Principal Investigator)
    Yuezhang@tamu.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Texas A&M University
400 HARVEY MITCHELL PKY S STE 300
COLLEGE STATION
TX  US  77845-4375
(979)862-6777
Sponsor Congressional District: 10
Primary Place of Performance: Texas A&M University
1005 Eller O&M Bldg.
College Station
TX  US  77845-4375
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
10
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): JF6XLNB4CDJ5
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): Atmospheric Chemistry
Primary Program Source: 01002425DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
01002122DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s):
Program Element Code(s): 152400
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.050

ABSTRACT

The goal of this project is to examine the climate effects of organosulfate-containing secondary organic aerosol (SOA) by investigating their chemical composition, morphology, and phase state in a laboratory setting, and by parameterizing the resultant data for the prediction of aerosol-cloud interactions. The hypothesis is that certain biogenic volatile organic compound-derived SOA enhanced by aqueous reactions within acidic sulfate aerosol, will serve as more effective ice nuclei particle (INP) and less effective cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), due to the production of highly viscous and less hygroscopic organosulfates. This research is expected to help improve the understanding of how aerosols impact cloud formation and cloud properties and will contribute to reducing the uncertainties in predicting future climate.

Organosulfate-rich SOA produced from the oxidation of isoprene, ?-caryophyllene, and ?-pinene, as well as authentic organosulfates (OSs) synthesized at the University of North Carolina, will be systematically examined for their INP and CCN properties during this project. Chemical characterization methods will be used to identify the key species in the OS-rich SOA that alter their INP and CCN properties. The primary objectives of this research are to: (1) determine how chemical composition, phase state, and morphology affect the CCN and INP activities of OS-rich SOA; (2) measure and quantify how the chemical composition and phase state affect the cloud activation properties of OS-rich SOA during atmospheric aging by heterogeneous hydroxyl radical oxidation; and (3) develop parameterizations in order to generalize the effects of SOA chemical composition, phase and mixing state on the CCN/IN potential of these particles for potential model simulations and field data comparison.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Gagan, Sahir and Sarang, Kumar and Rudzinski, Krzysztof J. and Liu, Ruizhe and Szmigielski, Rafal and Zhang, Yue "Synthetic strategies for oxidation products from biogenic volatile organic compounds in the atmosphere: A review" Atmospheric Environment , v.312 , 2023 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2023.120017 Citation Details
Niu, Sining and Liu, Ruizhe and Zhao, Qian and Gagan, Sahir and Dodero, Alana and Ying, Qi and Ma, Xingmao and Cheng, Zezhen and China, Swarup and Canagaratna, Manjula and Zhang, Yue "Quantifying the Chemical Composition and Real-Time Mass Loading of Nanoplastic Particles in the Atmosphere Using Aerosol Mass Spectrometry" Environmental Science & Technology , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c10286 Citation Details

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