Abstract View
Firework Impacts on Air Quality in Metro Manila, Philippines during the 2019 New Year
GENEVIEVE ROSE LORENZO, Rachel Braun, Lin Ma, Eva-Lou Edwards, Connor Stahl, Mojtaba Azadi Aghdam, Andrea F Corral, Hossein Dadashazar, Paola Angela Banaga, Grace Betito, Gabrielle Leung, Shane Marie Visaga, Avelino Arellano, Maria Obiminda Cambaliza, Melliza Templonuevo Cruz, Alexander B. MacDonald, Ilya Razencov, Ed Eloranta, Robert Holz, James Bernard Simpas, Armin Sorooshian, University of Arizona
Abstract Number: 444
Working Group: Urban Aerosols
Abstract
Fireworks affect air quality, visibility, atmospheric chemistry, and health. Yet, there have been no comprehensive physicochemical measurements of fireworks and their associated impacts in a megacity in Southeast Asia, where fireworks are customary. Novel 48-hour size-resolved particulate matter (PM) measurements were made before, during, and after New Year 2019 at the Manila Observatory in Quezon City, Philippines, as part of the Cloud, Aerosol, and Monsoon Processes Philippines Experiment (CAMP2Ex). During the firework event, water-soluble ions and elements were mostly in the submicrometer diameter range. Total water-soluble bulk mass concentration was enriched 5.7 times, while the water-soluble mass fraction of PM2.5 increased by 28.1% above background. Potassium and non-sea salt (nss) SO42- contributed the most (70.9%) to the water-soluble mass, with their mass size distributions shifted to a larger submicrometer mode during the firework event, while NO3-, Cl-, and Mg2+ (21.1% mass contribution) shifted from supermicrometer to submicrometer mode. Known firework components uninfluenced by secondary formation and with the highest enrichments (6.1 – 65.2) are identified as major firework tracers (Cu, Ba, Sr, K, Al, and Pb). They, excluding K, contributed only 2.1% to the total water-soluble bulk mass concentration. A K-rich cube and Cl--rich crystal and capsule-shaped particles were detected via surface microscopy in the firework samples. Heavy surface aerosol loading observed with a High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) around the fireworks peak (22:00 – 03:00 local time) was associated with aerosol optical depth (AOD) values reaching 1.1, peak PM2.5 concentrations, and reduced visibility. Enhanced particulate water-soluble mass fraction, enriched firework emission tracer concentrations, and shifts in mass size distributions during fireworks impact particles’ respirability, hygroscopicity, and ability to form cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), while also altering uptake mechanisms for gases like SO2 and influencing nearby waterbodies.