AAAR 37th Annual Conference October 14 - October 18, 2019 Oregon Convention Center Portland, Oregon, USA
Abstract View
Chemical Properties of Indoor Organic Aerosols
Hannah Przelomski, Erin Katz, Peter DeCarlo, RACHEL O'BRIEN, College of William and Mary
Abstract Number: 384 Working Group: The Air We Breathe: Indoor Aerosol Sources and Chemistry
Abstract Indoor areas have larger surface area to volume ratios and slower air exchange rates compared to outdoors, thus increasing opportunity for aerosol particles to deposit onto indoor surfaces. The composition of this material can provide insights into transport and sources for indoor aerosol particles. The chemical composition and physical properties, including viscosity, may play an important role in the interactions between the indoor air and the lofted and deposited aerosol. Here, the chemical composition of the lower volatility fraction of aerosol particles collected in a kitchen is characterized using both ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry (UHR-MS) and offline-Aerosol Mass Spectrometry (AMS). The average molecular weight of these compounds is around 900 amu with an average carbon number of around 50. A comparison with online-AMS shows good overlap between the composition of surface film and aerosol particles generated by food cooking over the same time period. This organic mixture is also sensitive to aging processes including photolysis and ozonolysis. Here, a decrease in the average molecular weight is observed in both cases, consistent with fragmentation and volatilization of a fraction of the material. This work demonstrates the advantages of UHR-MS and offline AMS to characterize these particles. A better understanding of the composition and transformations of these films will provide insights into indoor chemical transport and exposure with impacts on human health in indoor spaces.