ALBERT

Description: Particulate emissions from residential wood combustion in Europe – revised estimates and an evaluation Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions, 14, 31719-31765, 2014 Author(s): H. A. C. Denier van der Gon, R. Bergström, C. Fountoukis, C. Johansson, S. N. Pandis, D. Simpson, and A. Visschedijk Currently residential wood combustion (RWC) is increasing in Europe because of rising fossil fuel prices but also due to climate change mitigation policies. However, especially in small-scale applications, RWC may cause high emissions of particulate matter (PM). Recently we have developed a new high-resolution (7 km × 7 km) anthropogenic carbonaceous aerosol emission inventory for Europe. The inventory indicated that about half of the total PM 2.5 emission in Europe is carbonaceous aerosol and identified RWC as the largest organic aerosol (OA) source in Europe. The inventory was partly based on national reported PM emissions. Use of this OA inventory as input for two Chemical Transport Models (CTMs), PMCAMx and EMEP MSC-W, revealed major underestimations of OA in winter time, especially for regions dominated by RWC. Interestingly, this was not universal but appeared to differ by country. In the present study we constructed a new bottom-up emission inventory for RWC accounting for the semi-volatile components of the emissions. The new RWC emissions are higher than those in the previous inventory by a factor of 2–3 but with substantial inter-country variation. The new emission inventory served as input for the CTMs and a substantially improved agreement between measured and predicted organic aerosol was found. The new RWC inventory improves the model calculated OA significantly. Comparisons to Scandinavian source apportionment studies also indicate substantial improvements in the modeled wood-burning component of OA. This suggests that primary organic aerosol emission inventories need to be revised to include the semi-volatile OA that is formed almost instantaneously due to cooling of the flue gas or exhaust. Since RWC is a key source of fine PM in Europe, a major revision of the emission estimates as proposed here is likely to influence source-receptor matrices and modelled source apportionment. Since usage of biofuels, such as wood, in small combustion units is a globally significant source, this insight may also dramatically change global estimates of organic aerosol emissions.