Developing a new chemical link between composition, abundance and sources of black carbon in a major urban environment

我们周围的空气对我们的生存至关重要，但每次呼吸都会将污染物的小颗粒转移到我们的肺部。据估计，仅在英国，长期暴露于空气中的颗粒物（PM）就会导致34万生命年的损失，相当于每年约29,000人死亡。柴油和其他化石燃料以及生物质燃烧排放的黑碳（BC）是PM的一个重要来源，对健康有特定的不利影响。通过捕获行星辐射，BC也是全球变暖的重要贡献者。联合国最近的一份报告得出结论，控制BC将对人类福祉产生直接和多重的好处。尽管自20世纪60年代以来，英国的排放量和黑烟/BC的浓度大幅减少，但糟糕的城市空气质量仍然是政府的优先领域（议会环境委员会，2016）。格拉斯哥是该项目的重点区域，历史上一直是伦敦以外空气污染水平最高的地区之一。尽管它很重要，但人们对不列颠哥伦比亚省的了解仍然很少。它在大气中的光学吸收测量，以及它在土壤中的量化，大部分发射的BC的命运，都是可操作地定义的，后者可以产生数量级的丰度差异[4]。此外，除了BC含有致癌多芳香族化合物[5]外，关于BC的确切化学成分的信息很少。该项目的总体目标是通过在当前背景下，以及通过检查土壤/泥炭剖面中BC的历史记录，提供BC的组成、丰度和来源之间的化学联系，加强对BC环境过程的理解。关键的新颖之处在于一种新的化学方法的应用，加氢热解（HyPy），它在安全的化学基础上分离，量化和表征BC，捕获完整的BC光谱。该项目是与CASE合作伙伴Air Monitors Ltd合作设计的，该公司是颗粒物和BC采样和测量仪器的主要开发商和供应商。与Air Monitors Ltd业务相关的项目成果包括为BC监测设备的校准和改进提供信息的数据，并强调了BC对最终用户（例如政府和行业）的重要性。Air Monitors Ltd.承诺为博士生提供设备和培训，以获取PM样品，在当前的商业BC监测应用和数据解释中。目的：1)确定格拉斯哥市BC污染的当代浓度、化学成分和来源；2)将当前BC组成和丰度的快照与过去几十年土壤中BC丰度和组成垂直剖面的历史记录进行比较

The air around us is vital for survival, yet every breath transfers small particles of pollutants into our lungs. It is estimated that in the UK alone long-term exposure to airborne particulate matter (PM) results in 340,000 life-years lost, equivalent to c.29,000 deaths a year [1]. Black carbon (BC), emitted from diesel and other fossil-fuel and biomass combustion, is a significant contributor to PM, with specific adverse effects on health [2]. BC is also an important contributor to global warming by trapping planetary radiation. A recent UN report concluded that control of BC would have immediate and multiple benefits for human well-being [3]. Despite substantial UK reductions in emissions and concentrations of black smoke/BC since the 1960s, poor urban air quality remains a government priority area (Parliamentary Environment Committee, 2016). Glasgow, the project focus area has, and historically had, amongst the highest air pollution levels outside London. Despite its importance, BC remains poorly understood. Its atmospheric measurement by optical absorption, and its quantification in soils, the fate of the majority of emitted BC, are both operationally defined and in the latter can yield orders of magnitude difference in abundance [4]. Furthermore, there is little information on the precise chemistry of BC other than it contains carcinogenic polyaromatic compounds [5]. The overall aim of this project is to enhance understanding of BC environmental processes by providing a chemical link between composition, abundance and sources of BC, both in the current context, but also through examination of the historical record of BC contained in soil/peat profiles. The key novelty is the application of a new chemical methodology, hydropyrolysis (HyPy), which isolates, quantifies, and characterises BC on a secure chemical basis, capturing the full BC spectrum. The project has been designed in collaboration with the CASE partner, Air Monitors Ltd, who are a major developer and supplier of particulate matter and BC sampling and measurement instrumentation. Project outcomes relevant to Air Monitors Ltd business include data that informs calibration and improvement of BC monitoring equipment and that highlights the importance of characterizing BC to end users, e.g. governmental and industry. Air Monitors Ltd. have committed to provide both equipment and training to the PhD student in obtaining PM samples, in current commercial BC monitoring application and in data interpretation.Objectives:1) Determine the contemporary concentrations, chemical composition and sources of BC pollution in Glasgow City2) Compare the snapshot of current BC composition and abundance with historical records from soil vertical profiles of BCabundance and composition from the last few decades