NER: New Instruments for Real-Time, High-Resolution Characterization of Nanoparticles in the Environment

克拉克森大学人类活动排放的纳米粒子会造成城市污染，通过云系相互作用影响全球气候，并越来越多地被认为会对人类健康造成不利影响。必须探索导致周围纳米颗粒形成和演化的分子过程，以更好地理解这些颗粒在环境中的作用。由于颗粒形成的时空分布及其在典型环境条件下的快速生长速度的不均一性，这类研究变得复杂起来。然而，目前可用于纳米颗粒测量的技术在很大程度上不能满足这些研究的需要。基于对纳米气溶胶过程的准确表征的需要，本研究项目的总体目标是设计和开发能够实现对纳米颗粒尺寸分布的原位、实时和高分辨率测量的仪器，并提供成分表征。这些仪器的环境测量将与实验室实验和建模结合使用，以极大地促进我们对环境中纳米级过程的理解。智力优势：这一提议的动机是对实时、高分辨率纳米粒子物理和化学表征的迫切需求。对于这种测量，这项建议引入了两种新的创新的纳米颗粒表征技术：1)独特的分类器设计，将能够以较大的气溶胶采样率测量高分辨率纳米颗粒尺寸分布；和2)新的挥发性响应光谱仪，用于快速测量颗粒组成，其速度比目前可能快一个数量级。利用这些仪器进行现场测量，结合气溶胶微物理模型，将促进我们对环境纳米粒子及其过程的理解。广泛的影响：除了开发新的大气纳米粒子特征仪器外，这项提议还将建立一种新的快速串联差分迁移率技术，可以扩展到其他测量，如气溶胶吸湿性。利用拟议仪器的数据进行流行病学研究，对于确定接触来源分类的环境纳米粒子与人类健康之间的任何联系至关重要。作为该项目的一部分，将招募一名博士后学者和一名本科生研究员。我们希望通过克拉克森的少数族裔项目和洛杉矶巴吞鲁日南方大学的个人招聘工作来协调我们的招聘工作，让来自代表性不足的群体的研究人员参与进来。结果和仪器设计将在会议上公布，并发表在同行评议的杂志上。总而言之，随着对这些粒子及其过程的了解的提高，纳米粒子科学和环境领域将得到极大的进步。它们的高分辨率和精确度的测量将为政策制定者和科学家提供关键数据，以研究复杂的纳米颗粒-大气相互作用，并评估纳米气溶胶对环境变化或人类健康影响的贡献。

ABSTRACT - 0508390Clarkson UniversityNanoparticle emissions from anthropogenic activities contribute to urban pollution, influence global climate through cloud system interactions, and are increasingly recognized to cause adverse human health effects. The molecular processes that result in the formation and evolution of ambient nanoparticles must be probed to provide an improved understanding of the role of these particles in the environment. Such studies are complicated by the inhomogeneity in spatial and temporal occurrences of particle formation and their rapid growth rates under typical ambient conditions. The techniques that are currently available for nanoparticle measurements are, however, largely inadequate for these studies.Based on the need for accurate characterization of nanoaerosol processes, the overall objective of this research project is to design and develop instrumentation that can enable in-situ, real-time, and high-resolution measurements of nanoparticle size distributions and provide compositional characterization. Ambient measurements with these instruments will be used in conjunction with laboratory experiments and modeling, to greatly advance our understanding of nanoscale processes in the environment.Intellectual merit:This proposal is motivated by an immediate requirement for real-time, high-resolutionnanoparticle physical and chemical characterization. For such measurements, this proposal introduces two new and innovative nanoparticle characterization techniques.1) A unique classifier design that will enable high-resolution nanoparticle size distribution measurements with a large aerosol sampling rate; and 2) A new volatility response spectrometer for fast particle composition measurements at rates ~ an order of magnitude faster than currently possible. Field measurements with these instruments in combination with aerosol microphysical modeling will advance our understanding of environmental nanoparticles and their processes.Broader Impacts:In addition to the development of new instruments for atmospheric nanoparticle characteristics, this proposal will establish a new fast tandem differential mobility technique that can be extended for other measurements such as aerosol hygroscopicity. Epidemiology studies with data from the proposed instruments will be critical to determine any link between exposure to source-classified ambient nanoparticles and human health.As a part of this project, a post-doctoral scholar and an undergraduate student researcher will be recruited. We hope to involve researchers from underrepresented groups by coordinating our recruitment through Clarkson's minority programs and with personal recruiting effort at Southern University, Baton Rouge, LA. The results and instrument designs will be presented in conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals.In summary, the fields of nanoparticle science and the environment will be greatly advanced with the improved knowledge of these particles and their processes. Their measurements at high resolution and accuracy will provide critical data for policy makers and scientists to study the complex nanoparticle-atmospheric interactions and assess nano-aerosol contributions to environmental changes or human health effects.This proposal addresses the research theme 'Nanoscale processes in the environment'.