Publication Date:
2017-01-30
Description:
Organosulfates are components of secondary organic aerosols (SOA) that form from oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the presence of sulfate. In this study, the composition and abundance of organosulfates were determined in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) collected from Centreville, AL, during the Southern Oxidant and Aerosol Study (SOAS) in summer 2013. Six organosulfates were quantified using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (TQD) against authentic standards. Among these, the three most abundant species were glycolic acid sulfate (0.5–52.5 ng m−3), lactic acid sulfate (0.5–36.7 ng m−3), and hydroxyacetone sulfate (0.5–14.3 ng m−3). These three species were strongly inter-correlated, suggesting similar precursors and/or formation pathways. Further correlations with sulfate, isoprene, and isoprene oxidation products indicate important roles for these precursors in organosulfate formation in Centreville. Positive filter sampling artifacts associated with these organosulfates due to gas adsorption or reaction of gas phase precursors of organosulfates with sulfuric acid were assessed for a subset of samples and were less than 7.8 % of their PM2.5 concentrations. Together, the quantified organosulfates accounted for
Print ISSN:
1680-7316
Electronic ISSN:
1680-7324
Topics:
Geosciences
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