The impact of molecular self-organisation on the atmospheric fate of a cooking aerosol proxy
<p>Atmospheric aerosols influence the climate via cloud droplet nucleation and can facilitate the long-range transport of harmful pollutants. The lifetime of such aerosols can therefore determine their environmental impact. Fatty acids are found in organic aerosol emissions with oleic acid, an...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics |
| Online Access: | https://acp.copernicus.org/articles/22/4895/2022/acp-22-4895-2022.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>Atmospheric aerosols influence the climate via cloud
droplet nucleation and can facilitate the long-range transport of harmful
pollutants. The lifetime of such aerosols can therefore determine their
environmental impact. Fatty acids are found in organic aerosol emissions
with oleic acid, an unsaturated fatty acid, being a large contributor to
cooking emissions. As a surfactant, oleic acid can self-organise into
nanostructured lamellar bilayers with its sodium salt, and this
self-organisation can influence reaction kinetics. We developed a kinetic
multi-layer model-based description of decay data we obtained from
laboratory experiments of the ozonolysis of coated films of this
self-organised system, demonstrating a decreased diffusivity for both oleic
acid and ozone due to lamellar bilayer formation. Diffusivity was further
inhibited by a viscous oligomer product forming in the surface layers of the
film. Our results indicate that nanostructure formation can increase the reactive half-life of oleic acid by an order of days at typical indoor and
outdoor atmospheric ozone concentrations. We are now able to place
nanostructure formation in an atmospherically meaningful and quantifiable
context. These results have implications for the transport of harmful
pollutants and the climate.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 1680-7316 1680-7324 |