Abstract View
Physical and Optical Properties of Aerodynamically Classified BC and BrC
JAMES ALLAN, Dawei Hu, Rami Alfarra, Kate Szpek, Justin Langridge, Michael Cotterell, Claire Belcher, Ian Rule, Zixia Liu, Chenjie Yu, Yunqi Shao, Aristeidis Voliotis, Mao Du, Brett Smith, Gregory Smallwood, Prem Lobo, Dantong Liu, Jim Haywood, Hugh Coe, University of Manchester and NCAS
Abstract Number: 47
Working Group: Carbonaceous Aerosol
Abstract
Accurately characterising the optical properties of carbonaceous particulate matter is hampered by our ability to be able to study the compositional components in isolation and in particles of a single size. The Soot Aerodynamic Size Selection for Optical properties (SASSO) project aims to address this by using an Aerodynamic Aerosol Classifier (AAC), which eliminates the multiple charging problems associated with electrostatic classification. A variety of soot sources were studied, including wood burning (using a controlled combustion technique to separate elemental and organic carbon combustion phases), an automotive diesel engine and an inverted propane flame. In addition, SOA was generated in a chamber to provide both non-absorbing and 'brown' coatings. The particles were analysed using various online chemical, physical and optical instruments to evaluate composition, morphology and refractive index. The science themes addressed include the applicability of the standard SP2 Aquadag calibration, effect of wood type and moisture content, effect of humidification-induced restruturing and accuracy of mixing assumptions used in optical models. The outcomes of this research will be used to improve the HadGEM climate model in the UK.