Anthropogenic, biogenic, and photochemical influences on surface formaldehyde and its significant decadal (2006-2017) decrease in the Lewiston-Clarkston valley of the northwestern United States

Formaldehyde (HCHO) is a key carcinogen and plays an important role in atmospheric chemistry. Both field measurements and Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) modeling have been employed to investigate the concentrations and sources of HCHO in the Lewiston-Clarkston (LC) valley of the mountainous northwestern U.S. Different instruments were deployed to measure surface formaldehyde and other related compounds in July of 2016 and 2017. The measurements reveal that the average HCHO concentrations have significantly decreased to 2-5 ppb in the LC valley in comparison to its levels (10-20 ppb) observed in July 2006. This discovery with surface measurements deserves attention given that satellite retrievals showed an increasing long-term trend from 2005 to 2014 in total vertical column density of HCHO in the region, suggesting that satellite instruments may not adequately resolve small valleys in the mountainous region. Our PMF modeling identified four major sources of HCHO in the valley: (1) emissions from a local paper mill, (2) secondary formation and background, (3) biogenic sources, and (4) traffic. This study reveals that the emissions from the paper mill cause high HCHO spikes (6-19 ppb) in the early morning. It is found that biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the area are influenced by national forests surrounding the region (e.g., Nez Perce-Clearwater, Umatilla, Wallowa-Whitman, and Idaho Panhandle National Forests). The results provide useful information for developing strategies to control HCHO levels and have implications for future HCHO studies in atmospheric chemistry, which affects secondary aerosols and ozone formation.

Theoretical Study of the Gas-Phase Hydrolysis of Formaldehyde to Produce Methanediol and Its Implication to New Particle Formation

Aldehydes were speculated to be important precursor species in new particle formation (NPF). The direct involvement of formaldehyde (CH₂O) in sulfuric acid and water nucleation is negligible; however, whether its atmospheric hydrolysate, methanediol (CH₂(OH)₂), which contains two hydroxyl groups, participates in NPF is not known. This work investigates both CH₂O hydrolysis and NPF from sulfuric acid and CH₂(OH)₂ with quantum chemistry calculations and atmospheric cluster dynamics modeling. Kinetic calculation shows that reaction rates of the gas-phase hydrolysis of CH₂O catalyzed by sulfuric acid are 11-15 orders of magnitude faster than those of the naked path at 253-298 K. Based on structures and the calculated formation Gibbs free energies, the interaction between sulfuric acid/its dimer/its trimer and CH₂(OH)₂ is thermodynamically favorable, and CH₂(OH)₂ forms hydrogen bonds with sulfuric acid/its dimer/its trimer via two hydroxyl groups to stabilize clusters. Our further cluster kinetic calculations suggested that the particle formation rates of the system are higher than those of the binary system of sulfuric acid and water at ambient low sulfuric acid concentrations and low relative humidity. In addition, the formation rate is found to present a negative temperature dependence because evaporation rate constants contribute significantly to it. However, cluster growth is essentially limited by the weak formation of the largest clusters, which implies that other stabilizing vapors are required for stable cluster formation and growth.

Analysis of Volatile Organic Compounds during the OCTAVE Campaign: Sources and Distributions of Formaldehyde on Reunion Island

The Oxygenated Compounds in the Tropical Atmosphere: Variability and Exchanges (OCTAVE) campaign aimed to improve the assessment of the budget and role of oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs) in tropical regions, and especially over oceans, relying on an integrated approach combining in situ measurements, satellite retrievals, and modeling. As part of OCTAVE, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were measured using a comprehensive suite of instruments on Reunion Island (21.07° S, 55.38° E) from 7 March to 2 May 2018. VOCs were measured at a receptor site at the Maïdo observatory during the entire campaign and at two source sites: Le Port from 19 to 24 April 2018 (source of anthropogenic emissions) and Bélouve from 25 April to 2 May 2018 (source of biogenic emissions) within a mobile lab. The Maïdo observatory is a remote background site located at an altitude of 2200 m, whereas Bélouve is located in a tropical forest to the east of Maïdo and Le Port is an urban area located northwest of Maïdo. The major objective of this study was to understand the sources and distributions of atmospheric formaldehyde (HCHO) in the Maïdo observatory on Reunion Island. To address this objective, two different approaches were used to quantify and determine the main drivers of HCHO at Maïdo. First, a chemical-kinetics-based (CKB) calculation method was used to determine the sources and sinks (biogenic, anthropogenic/primary, or secondary) of HCHO at the Maïdo site. The CKB method shows that 9% of the formaldehyde formed from biogenic emissions and 89% of HCHO had an unknown source; that is, the sources cannot be explicitly described by this method. Next, a positive matrix factorization (PMF) model was applied to characterize the VOC source contributions at Maïdo. The PMF analysis including VOCs measured at the Maïdo observatory shows that the most robust solution was obtained with five factors: secondary biogenic accounting for 17%, primary anthropogenic/solvents (24%), primary biogenic (14%), primary anthropogenic/combustion (22%), and background (23%). The main contributions to formaldehyde sources as described by the PMF model are secondary biogenic (oxidation of biogenic VOCs with 37%) and background (32%). Some assumptions were necessary concerning the high percentage of unknown HCHO sources of the CKB calculation method such as the biogenic emission factor resulting in large discrepancies between the two methods.

Atmospheric Spectroscopy and Photochemistry at Environmental Water Interfaces

The air-water interface is ubiquitous in nature, as manifested in the form of the surfaces of oceans, lakes, and atmospheric aerosols. The aerosol interface, in particular, can play a crucial role in atmospheric chemistry. The adsorption of atmospheric species onto and into aerosols modifies their concentrations and chemistries. Moreover, the aerosol phase allows otherwise unlikely solution-phase chemistry to occur in the atmosphere. The effect of the air-water interface on these processes is not entirely known. This review summarizes recent theoretical investigations of the interactions of atmosphere species with the air-water interface, including reactant adsorption, photochemistry, and the spectroscopy of reactants at the water surface, with an emphasis on understanding differences between interfacial chemistries and the chemistries in both bulk solution and the gas phase. The results discussed here enable an understanding of fundamental concepts that lead to potential air-water interface effects, providing a framework to understand the effects of water surfaces on our atmosphere.

Isotopic composition of formaldehyde in urban air

The isotopic composition of atmospheric formaldehyde was measured in air samples collected in urban Seattle, Washington. A recently developed gas chromatography-isotope ratio mass spectrometry analytical technique was used to extract formaldehyde directly from whole air, separate it from other volatile organic compounds, and measure its (13)C/(12)C and D/H ratio. Measurements of formaldehyde concentration were also made concomitant with isotope ratio. Results of the analysis of nine discrete air samples for delta(13)C-HCHO have a relatively small range in isotopic composition (-31 to -25 per thousand versus VPDB [+/-1.3 per thousand]) over a considerable concentration range (0.8-4.4 ppb [+/-15%]). In contrast, analyses of 17 air samples for deltaD-HCHO show a large range (-296 to +210 per thousand versus VSMOW [+/-50 per thousand]) over the concentrations measured (0.5-2.9 ppb). Observations of deltaD are weakly anticorrelated with concentration. Isotopic data are interpreted using both source- and sink-based approaches. Results of delta(13)C-HCHO are similar to those observed previously for a number of nonmethane hydrocarbons in urban environments and variability can be reconciled with a simple sink-based model. The large variability observed in deltaD-HCHO favors a source-based interpretation with HCHO depleted in deuterium from primary sources of HCHO (i.e., combustion) and HCHO enriched in deuterium from secondary photochemical sources (i.e., hydrocarbon oxidation).

Experimental choices for the determination of carbonyl compounds in air

The analysis of carbonyls in ambient air has received a great deal of scientific attention with the advancement of analytical techniques and increased demand for the build-up of its data base. In this review article, we have attempted to provide some insight into the relative performance of different instrumental approaches available for the analysis of ambient carbonyls with a major emphasis on high performance liquid chromatographic and gas chromatographic methods. Reported in several international standard procedures, derivatization of carbonyls with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (2,4-DNPH) with either an impinger or cartridges is the most commonly used method of HPLC detection. In this respect, a number of alternative hydrazine reagents have also been discussed for use with HPLC. In contrast, GC methods based on the combined application of adsorptive enrichment on solid sorbents and thermal desorption are examined with regard to their suitability for carbonyl analysis in air. Particular emphasis has been directed towards the advantages and drawbacks of these different instrumental techniques for ambient carbonyls. Based on this comparative approach, we discuss the suitability for each method for carbonyl analysis.

Rapid and Highly Sensitive Determination of Low-Molecular-Weight Carbonyl Compounds in Drinking Water and Natural Water by Preconcentration HPLC with 2,4-Dinitrophenylhydrazine

The aim of this research was to develop a simple procedure for a highly sensitive determination of low-molecular-weight (LMW) carbonyl compounds in drinking water and natural water. We employed a preconcentration HPLC system with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH) for the determination of LMW carbonyl compounds. A C-18 reverse-phase preconcentration column was used instead of a sample loop at the sample injection valve. A 0.1 - 5.0 mL portion of the derivatized sample solution was injected with a gas-tight syringe, and a 15% acetonitrile aqueous solution was pushed through the preconcentration column to remove the unreacted excess DNPH, which caused serious interference in the determination of formaldehyde. The detection limits were 1 - 3 nM with a relative standard deviation of 2 - 5% for 20 nM standard solutions (n = 5). The calibration curves were essentially unaffected by coexisting sea salts. Applications to commercial mineral water, tap water, river water, pond water and seawater are presented.