ATMOCHEM - Novel Approaches in the Understanding of Aromatic Compound Degradation in the Atmosphere: From Theoretical Studies to Simulation Chamber Experiments

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This project aims at a better understanding of the OH-initiated tropospheric degradation of aromatic hydrocarbons. Although this field of research has attracted a lot of attention in the last decades, there are still many open questions regarding important details of the reaction mechanism. Consequently, the impact of aromatic compounds on air quality in urban environments is still uncertain.Laboratory techniques, theoretical calculations and simulation chambers will be used to address the following questions using new methods and experimental approaches:1) What is the yield of different OH-adduct isomers of methyl substituted aromatics including the widely ignored ipso-isomers?2) What is the fate of the primary OH-adducts and of secondarily formed peroxy radicals?3) What is the yield of HO2 and RO2 radicals in consecutive reactions of the OH-adducts with O2 in the presence and absence of NO?4) Where can the currently implemented reaction mechanism for aromatic compounds in atmospheric models be improved to make radical budgets, NOx budgets and ozone formation consistent with observations in chamber experiments?The proposed project is a co-operation between the University of Bayreuth, Germany (partner 1), the University of Bordeaux, France (partner 2), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany (partner 3) and the University of Lille, France (partner 4).