Peroxyacetyl nitrate measurements by thermal dissociation–chemical ionization mass spectrometry in an urban environment: performance and characterizations

doi:10.1007/s11783-017-0925-7

Front. Environ. Sci. Eng.

2017, Vol. 11

Issue (4) : 3 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-017-0925-7

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Peroxyacetyl nitrate measurements by thermal dissociation–chemical ionization mass spectrometry in an urban environment: performance and characterizations

Xinfeng Wang¹, Tao Wang^1,², Likun Xue¹(

), Wei Nie³, Zheng Xu³, Steven C. N. Poon², Wenxing Wang¹

¹. Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
². Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, China
³. Institute for Climate and Global Change Research & School of Atmospheric Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China

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Abstract

The loss degree of PAN signal in a TD-CIMS caused by NO is tested and quantified.

TD-CIMS is applicable for PAN measurement in urban areas with necessary correction.

The PAN formation efficiency in urban Hong Kong increased with NO₂ concentration.

Peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) is an important indicator of photochemical smog and has adverse effects on human health and vegetation growth. A rapid and highly selective technique of thermal dissociation–chemical ionization mass spectrometry (TD-CIMS) was recently developed to measure the abundance of PAN in real time; however, it may be subject to artifact in the presence of nitric oxide (NO). In this study, we tested the interference of the PAN signal induced by NO, evaluated the performance of TD-CIMS in an urban environment, and investigated the concentration and formation of PAN in urban Hong Kong. NO caused a significant underestimation of the PAN signal in TD-CIMS, with the underestimation increasing sharply with NO concentration and decreasing slightly with PAN abundance. A formula was derived to link the loss of PAN signal with the concentrations of NO and PAN, which can be used for data correction in PAN measurements. The corrected PAN data from TD-CIMS were consistent with those from the commonly used gas chromatography with electron capture detection, which confirms the utility of TD-CIMS in an urban environment in which NO is abundant. In autumn of 2010, the hourly average PAN mixing ratio varied from 0.06 ppbv to 5.17 ppbv, indicating the occurrence of photochemical pollution in urban Hong Kong. The formation efficiency of PAN during pollution episodes was as high as 3.9 to 5.9 ppbv per 100 ppbv ozone. PAN levels showed a near-linear increase with NO_x concentration, suggesting a control policy of NO_x reduction for PAN pollution.

Keywords TD-CIMS Peroxyacetyl nitrate Interference Photochemical pollution Formation efficiency

Corresponding Author(s): Likun Xue

Issue Date: 13 April 2017

Cite this article:

Xinfeng Wang,Tao Wang,Likun Xue, et al. Peroxyacetyl nitrate measurements by thermal dissociation–chemical ionization mass spectrometry in an urban environment: performance and characterizations[J]. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng., 2017, 11(4): 3.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/10.1007/s11783-017-0925-7
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/Y2017/V11/I4/3

Fig.1 Schematic diagram of the TD-CIMS used for laboratory tests and field measurements

Fig.2 Mass spectra of ambient air by TD-CIMS in urban Hong Kong during daytime and nighttime

Fig.3 Raw signal at 59 amu for PAN calibration in the night of Nov. 14, 2010. Insert shows the calibration curve

Fig.4 Effect of NO and PAN concentrations on signal loss at 59 amu

Fig.5 Scatter plot of corrected PAN concentration by TD-CIMS versus that by GC-ECD

Fig.6 Time series of concentrations of PAN, O₃, NO, and NO₂, and meteorological parameters of solar radiation and temperature for the field measurements

Fig.7 Diurnal variation of PAN, O₃, NO, and NO₂ for the field measurements. Error bars represent half of the standard error

Fig.8 Scatter plots of PAN versus ozone for three pollution episodes on Oct. 24, Nov. 22, and Dec. 2, 2010. The slope indicates the relative formation efficiency of PAN

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