Collaborative research: US emissions of sulfuryl fluoride, a pesticide and potent greenhouse gas

硫酰氟是一种杀虫剂，用于从家庭和建筑、农业和国际航运中消灭白蚁和其他害虫。在全球范围内，随着硫酰氟取代有毒的杀虫剂甲基溴，大气中的硫酰氟浓度一直在呈指数级增加。甲基溴正在被逐步淘汰，因为它消耗了平流层臭氧层，而臭氧层保护地球上的生命免受强烈的紫外线的伤害。尽管硫酰氟不会消耗臭氧层，但它是一种强有力的温室气体，在高暴露条件下会对健康造成负面影响。关于硫酰氟的使用存在许多知识空白，妨碍了对其环境影响的全面评估。该项目的目标是通过模拟硫酰氟的排放、去向和运输来解决这些知识差距。这将通过具体研究来实现，以测量环境空气中的硫酰氟浓度，评估使用量和排放量随时间的变化，并估计在熏蒸过程中吸收的排放量的比例。这项研究的成功完成将为评估硫酰氟对环境的影响提供关键信息，以便更好地向联邦和州监管机构提供信息。这些发现还将有助于考虑硫酰氟的温室气体排放，目前官方估计中不包括这种化合物。每年夏天在巴尔的摩公立学校指导高中研究实习生，提高科学素养，加强国家的STEM工作，将为社会带来额外的好处。硫酰氟是一种有毒的杀虫剂和强有力的温室气体；它是一种常见的熏蒸剂，用于消灭寄生在住宅结构和农产品上的白蚁和害虫。尽管作为甲基溴替代品的使用量呈指数级增长，但在理解硫酰氟在环境方面的命运方面仍存在重大差距。这项研究项目的目标是通过评估美国硫酰氟的排放量来解决这些差距，并将这些排放量放在全球范围内。这一目标将通过两个主要研究目标来实现：i)使用对气体的大气观测和反向建模来估计全美硫酰氟排放量的大小和分布，以及ii)在全球排放量增加的背景下评估美国排放量的最新趋势。这项研究旨在检验三个假设：1)加州在美国硫酰氟排放中所占份额比全国任何其他地区都大，2)美国排放量的增加占全球排放量增加的大部分，以及H3)至少部分用于熏蒸的硫酰氟被吸收到结构或农产品中。该项目的成功完成将提供必要的关键信息，以确定科学家、监管机构、公共卫生专业人员和其他利益攸关方使用硫酰氟对人类和生态健康的影响。研究小组的初步分析表明，加州硫酰氟使用量的增加可能会完全否定该州在实现减排目标方面最近取得的进展。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Sulfuryl fluoride is a pesticide used to exterminate termites and other pests from homes and buildings, agriculture, and international shipping. Globally, atmospheric concentrations of sulfuryl fluoride have been increasing exponentially as it replaces the toxic pesticide methyl bromide. Methyl bromide is being phased out as it depletes the stratospheric ozone layer, which shields life on Earth from harsh ultraviolet light. Although sulfuryl fluoride does not deplete the ozone layer, it is a potent greenhouse gas and can cause negative health impacts at high exposure. There are numerous knowledge gaps regarding the use of sulfuryl fluoride that prevent a full assessment of its environmental impact. The goal of this project is to address these knowledge gaps by modeling emissions, fate, and transport of sulfuryl fluoride. This will be achieved through specific research to measure sulfuryl fluoride concentrations in ambient air, evaluate how use and emissions are changing over time, and estimate the fraction of emissions that are absorbed during fumigation. Successful completion of this research will provide key information for assessing the environmental impact of sulfuryl fluoride to better inform federal and state regulatory agencies. These findings will also facilitate greenhouse gas emissions accounting for sulfuryl fluoride, which currently do not include this compound in official estimates. Additional benefits to society will result from mentoring high school research interns each summer from Baltimore Public Schools, increasing scientific literacy and enhancing the Nation’s STEM workforce.Sulfuryl fluoride is a toxic pesticide and potent greenhouse gas; it is a common fumigant used to exterminate termites and pests that infest residential structures and agricultural products. In spite of the exponential increase in usage as a replacement for methyl bromide, there are major gaps in understanding the environmental fate of sulfuryl fluoride. The goal of this research project is to address these gaps by evaluating US emissions of sulfuryl fluoride and place these emissions in a global context. This goal will be achieved through two primary research objectives to: i) estimate the magnitude and distribution of sulfuryl fluoride emissions across the United States using atmospheric observations of the gas coupled with inverse modeling, and ii) evaluate recent trends in US emissions in the context of global emissions increases. This research is designed to test three hypotheses that H1) California accounts for a larger share of US sulfuryl fluoride emissions than any other region of the country, H2) increasing US emissions account for the majority of global emissions increases, and H3) at least some of the sulfuryl fluoride used for fumigation is absorbed into structures or agricultural products. Successful completion of this project will provide critical information necessary to characterize the human and ecological health impacts of sulfuryl fluoride use by scientists, regulators, public health professionals, and other stakeholders. Preliminary analysis by the research team indicates that increased sulfuryl fluoride use in the state of California may completely negate recent progress toward meeting emission reduction goals in the state.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.