Biogenic Volatile Organic Carbon (VOC) Emission and Organic Aerosol Composition During the Biosphere Effects on Aerosol and Photochemistry Experiment (BEARPEX)

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This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).The primary goal of this project is to develop a better understanding of secondary organic aerosols (SOA), which are aerosols that are formed from volatile organic carbon compound (VOC) precursors in the atmosphere. Until very recently, it was not possible to measure the detailed organic chemical composition of aerosols with in situ instrumentation, limiting investigations of SOA formation and aerosol source contributions. This project will deploy new instrumentation capable of detailed organic aerosol composition measurements to further investigate forest biosphere-atmosphere exchange, with a focus on the contributions of biogenic as well as anthropogenic emissions to primary and secondary organic aerosol. This effort will be carried out through a multi-investigator collaborative experiment at Blodgett Forest, known as BEARPEX 2009, and through smog chamber experiments that include improved measurements of the specific chemicals in SOA.This research will provide important new constraints for models predicting the formation and distribution of SOA, models that estimate the effects of VOC emissions on regional air quality and global climate, and models predicting the interaction of biogenic VOC emissions with climate change. The multiple collaborative research efforts that will occur during BEARPEX 2009 will enhance the training of PhD students and postdoctoral researchers, and undergraduates will also gain experience through their involvement in the project. Research methodologies and results developed through the project will be integrated into classroom teaching by the principal investigator.