Development and Use of a Perfluorocarbon Tracer System (PERTRAS)

PERTRAS（全氟烃示踪剂系统）项目旨在开发和部署机载示踪剂释放和探测系统。使用PERTRAS，感兴趣的空气质量可以用全氟化碳化合物标记，并在长达三天的时间内进行跟踪，以研究大气中的传输和混合过程，痕量气体的光化学转化以及气溶胶层和云中的微物理过程。在项目的第二阶段，PERTRAS将在五次HALO任务中部署（ML-CIRRUS、POLSTRACC、ACRIDICON、ChArMEX、CIRRUS-RS）进行具体的示踪剂实验，包括卷云生命周期研究、北极背风波冰云的非均匀过程、深层对流中的空气质量输送和改变、生物和生物质燃烧羽流中的光化学转化，以及持续的尾迹演变成卷云。为了满足这些示踪剂实验的要求，PERTRAS的检测能力将通过两个在线飞机全氟化碳示踪剂测量系统，一个GC/MS和一个NI-CIMS来扩展。这两种仪器在全氟化碳化合物的时间分辨率和检测限方面相互补充。此外，气相色谱仪将测量传统的长寿命示踪剂（如氟氯化碳、SF6、N2 O、CH 4），NI-CIMS和现有的ATS（吸附管采样器）也可分别用于探测二氧化硫、大气酸和碳氢化合物，用于不侧重于全氟化碳示踪剂实验的飞行任务。

The project PERTRAS (Perfluorocarbon Tracer System) aims at the development and deployment of an aircraft-borne tracer release and detection system. With PERTRAS air masses of interest can be tagged with a perfluorocarbon compound and followed over a time period of up to three days for investigations on transport and mixing processes in the atmosphere, photochemical transformations of trace gases, and microphysical processes in aerosol layers and clouds. During the second phase of the project, PERTRAS will be deployed during five HALO missions (ML-CIRRUS, POLSTRACC, ACRIDICON, ChArMEX, CIRRUS-RS) for specific tracer experiments including studies on the life cycle of cirrus clouds, heterogeneous processes in Arctic lee-wave ice clouds, air mass transport and modification in deep convection, photochemical transformations in biogenic and biomass burning plumes, and evolution of persistent contrails into cirrus clouds. To meet the requirements of these tracer experiments, the detection capabilities of PERTRAS will be extended by two on-line aircraft perfluorocarbon tracer measurement systems, a GC/MS and a NI-CIMS. Both instruments complement each other in terms of time resolution and detection limit for perfluorocarbon compounds. In addition, the GC will measure conventional long-lived tracers (e.g. CFCs, SF6, N2O, CH4), and the NI-CIMS, and the already existing ATS (Adsorption Tube Sampler) can be also used for the detection of SO2, atmospheric acids and hydrocarbons, respectively, for missions not focused on PFC tracer experiments.