Atmospheric Aerosols, Sources

and Characteristics
 Introduction
 Aerosols are the suspension of small solid particles or liquid
droplets in the air.
Air on the Earth contains particles, hence has the properties of
aerosols. The particles are not always visible.
 Radius is 0.01 to 100 microns
Important for both present day weather and climate change

e.g.- Smoke, Dust, Soot, Sea salt etc…

 They come from mechanical (big ones) and
chemical (little ones) processes.
 They leave the atmosphere by falling out (big
ones) or being taken up into rainfall (little
ones).
 They have a lifetime of about 1 week.
 Human activities have substantially increased
the amount of aerosols in the Earth’s
atmosphere.
Aerosol Types and Origin
• Aerosol particles larger than about 1 mm
in size are produced by windblown dust
and sea salt from sea spray and bursting
bubbles

• Aerosols smaller than 1 µm are mostly

formed by condensation processes such
as conversion of sulfur dioxide (SO2) gas
(released from volcanic eruptions) to
sulfate particles and by formation of soot
and smoke during burning processes.

• After formation, the aerosols are mixed

and transported by atmospheric motions
and are primarily removed by cloud and
precipitation processes.
 Backgrounds
Global distribution of AOD (670nm) Interpolated out of the AERONET
Sun/sky radiometer

•Aerosol effects are more regional than global.

• Latest IPCC report shows that understanding of aerosol improved (from low to low-
med level).
•One of the good contribution is increased in-situ measurements.
• There are much interest in calculation of the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) across the
globe on regional basis and reduction of its uncertainty.
 Air Quality
• Definition:- Air pollution may be described as contamination of the
atmosphere by gaseous, liquid, solid wastes or by-products that can
endanger life, attack materials and reduce visibility.

• It is a worldwide threat to human health and the natural environment.

The state of air pollution is often expressed as Air Quality (AQ).

Air quality is used to measure the concentration of gaseous

pollutants and size or number of solid or liquid
pollutants(aerosols/ trace gases).

“Setting Sun at Ivry” Jean Guillaumin 1869

 Sources of Aerosols
On the basis of their origin Aerosols are of two type

i. Primary Aerosols can either be produced by ejection into the

atmosphere, or physical and chemical processes within the atmosphere.

e.g.- Mineral aerosols, sea salt, volcanic dust, organic aerosols.

Primary Aerosol are of two type

a) Natural Aerosol

b) Anthropogenic Aerosol

ii. Secondary Aerosols are often produced by atmospheric gases

reacting and condensing , or by cooling vapor condensation (gas to
particle conversation).

e.g.- Nitrates, Sulphates from various sources.

 Atmospheric terms

Primary pollutants
• Pollutants released directly from the source into the air
in a harmful form.
• The example of the primary pollutant is SO2 which
directly harms vegetation and our lung
 Atmospheric terms
• carbon monoxide (CO)
– odorless, colorless, poisonous gas
– created by incomplete combustion (especially bad with older cars)
– generates headaches, drowsiness, fatigue, can result in death
• nitrogen oxide (NO)
– emitted directly by autos, industry
• sulfur dioxides (SO2)
– produced largely through coal burning
– responsible for acid rain problem
• volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
– highly reactive organic compounds
– release through incomplete combustion and industrial sources
• particulate matter (dust, ash, salt particles)
– bad for your lungs
 Atmospheric terms
Secondary pollutants
• Pollutants modified to a hazardous form after they enter the air or
are formed by chemical reactions as components of the air mix
and interact.
• Example:
– sulfuric acid H2SO4
• can cause respiratory problems
– nitrogen dioxide NO2
• gives air a brownish coloration
– PAN - peroxyacetyl nitrate
 Atmospheric terms
Particulates Matter
• Also known as particle pollution or PM, is a complex
mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets.
Particle pollution is made up of a number of
components, including acids (such as nitrates and
sulfates), organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust
particles.
• Particulate matter is composed of both coarse and fine
particles.
 Atmospheric terms
Particulates Matter
• Coarse particles (PM10) have an aerodynamic diameter
between 2.5µm and 10µm. They are formed by mechanical
disruption (e.g. crushing, grinding, abrasion of surfaces); and
suspension of dust. PM10 is composed of aluminosilicate and
other oxides of crustal elements
• Fine particles have an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5µm
(PM2.5). These particles are formed from gas and
condensation of high-temperature vapors during combustion,
and they are composed of various combinations of sulfate,
nitrate, carbon compounds, ammonium, hydrogen ion, organic
compounds, metals (Pb, Cd, V, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mn, and Fe), and
particle bound water.
Extinction Coefficient as a PM2.5 Surrogate
PM2.5 = 7.6 g/m3 PM2.5 = 21.7 g/m3

PM2.5 = 65.3 g/m3

Glacier National Park images are adapted from Malm, An Introduction to

Visibility (1999) http://webcam.srs.fs.fed.us/intropdf.htm
• Aerosol Optical Depth(Thickness)
popularly known as AOD ( AOT)
 Aerosol optical depth (AOD),  is a measure of the extinction caused by scattering
and absorption:
I/I0 = exp (-bext x)
 = bext x
 =  bext(z) dz (unitless)

The extinction coefficient represents the sum of the extinctions from

gases and particles, each of which can in turn be divided into extinction
due to absorption or scattering.
bext = babs + bscatt
 Natural Aerosols
 Natural Aerosols are that aerosol which is
originate directly from Nature.
Ex: Sea Salt, Desert Dust, Forest Fire
 Natural Aerosols are mainly coarse particles.
 Anthropogenic Aerosols
Anthropogenic Aerosols are originate from human
activities.
E.g. Industrial dust, biomass burning, soot ,
Organic aerosols from VOCs etc
Anthropogenic Aerosols are mainly fine particles
suspended in the air.
 Secondary Aerosols

Secondary aerosols are often produced by

atmospheric gases reacting and condensing , or by
cooling vapor condensation (gas to particle
conversation) .
E.g. Sulphates from biogenic gases, Sulphates from
Volcanic So2.
 Properties of Aerosols

 Physical Properties of Aerosols

 Optical Properties of Aerosols

 Chemical Properties of Aerosols

 Physical Properties of Aerosols

•Size: 1 nm to 100 µm
• Shape: Sphere, cubic, ellipsoids

On the basis of their size range Aerosols can be divided in

three category
Nucleation Mode (10-4–10-3 µm)
 Accumulation Mode (10-1–1 µm)
 Coarse Mode (1–10 µm)
 ORIGIN OF THE ATMOSPHERIC AEROSOL
Aerosol: dispersed condensed phases suspended in a gas
Size range: 0.001 m (molecular cluster) to 100 m (small raindrop)

Soil dust
Sea salt

Environmental importance: health (respiration), visibility, climate,

cloud formation, heterogeneous reactions, long-range transport of nutrients…
TYPICAL SIZE DISTRIBUTION
Seinfeld and Pandis
 Physical Properties of Aerosols
 Structure
 Size Distribution:
dN(r)/dlogr=Number of particles of a size class(r)
/Range of the size class
 Shape of particle:
- Sphere, cubic, ellipsoids
 Diameter: 1 nm – 100um
 Optical Properties of Aerosols

 Scattering
 Absorption
 Warming / Cooling of Atmosphere
 Direct solar effect
Aerosols scatter and absorb solar radiation

No aerosols Scattering aerosols Absorbing aerosols

• Scattering is a process, which conserves the total amount of
energy, but the direction in which the radiation propagates
may be altered.

• Absorption is a process that removes energy from the

electromagnetic radiation field, and converts it to another
form.

• Extinction (or attenuation) is the sum of scattering and

absorption, so it represents total effect of medium on
radiation passing the medium.
In the atmosphere: aerosol particles can scatter and absorb solar and
infrared radiation altering air temperature and the rates of
photochemical reactions.

Key parameters that govern the scattering and absorption of radiation

by a particle:

i.the wavelength of the incident radiation;

i.the size of the particles, expressed as a dimensional size parameter

x: D x (where D is the particle diameter);

i.complex refractive index (or optical constant) of a particle: m = n + i k

where n is the real part of the refractive index, k is the imaginary part
of the refractive index. Both n and k depend on the wavelength.
Mie theory is the basis for calculation of the scattering and absorption
coefficients of a spherical particle having a given diameter and
refractive index.
For a particle with diameter D and refractive index m we can calculate
the scattering efficiency Qsc, absorption efficiency Qabs, and
extinction efficiency Qext at a given wavelength using Mie theory.

Qext = Qsc + Qabs, and they are dimensionless

Mie theory is used when size parameter x is about 1 (particle about

the same size as the wavelength).

If x << 1 (particles small compared with the wavelength) we use

Rayleigh regime, in which scattering and extinction coefficient are
given by approximate expressions.
 Major Chemical Components of Ambient Aerosol Particles

Inorganic Organic

• Sulfate, nitrate, phosphate, • Alkanes, alkanols, alkanoic

chloride acids, diacids, ketoacids
• Ammonium, sodium, • Polycyclic aromatic
potassium, calcium, hydrocarbons (PAHs)
magnesium • Alkenes and aldehydes
• Aluminum, cadmium, iron, • Pesticides/PCBs
lead, silicon
• Polyols, carbohydrates
• Black carbon
• Humic like substances
(HULIS)
Radiative Effectcs
ENERGY BUDGET AND RADIATIVE
FORCING
 Definition:A change in
the net radiation at the
top of the atmosphere
due to some external
factor.
 Net radiation =
Incoming - Outgoing

 Positivenet radiation=
Incoming > Outgoing
 Negative net radiation
=Outgoing > Incoming
 Radiative Transfer
Computations
DIRECT RADIATIVE FORCING

The aerosol direct radiative forcing is calculated in the radiation

code with the difference in shortwave fluxes with aerosol and
without aerosol.

The computations are done over the entire shortwave spectrum

(0.30-3.0μm) and is divided into 24 wavelengths.

• Extinction efficiency (α) interaction aerosol and radiations

RADIATIVE FORCING
The aerosol radiative forcing at the top of the atmosphere (TOA) or at the
bottom of the atmosphere (BOA) is defined as the difference in the net (down
minus up) solar flux (solar plus long wave; in W m_2) with and without aerosol,
i.e.
∆F = (Fa↓‒ Fa↑) – (Fo↓‒ Fo↑)

Where ∆F denotes the irradiance (downwelling or upwelling, Wm-2) and (F↓-

F↑) denotes the net irradiance (down welling minus upwelling) computed with

aerosol (Fa) and without aerosol (F0) at either the TOA or BOA. The difference

of RF at TOA and BOA gives the ARF in the whole atmosphere.

MONTHLY VARIATION OF AEROSOL RADIATIVE
FORCING

Figure Monthly variation of aerosol radiative forcing at TOA, BOA and ATM
 SEASONAL VARIATION OF RADIATIVE FORCING

Figure Seasonal variation of aerosol radiative forcing at TOA,

BOA and ATM
NDP/ Event AOT500 A.E440-870 SSA675 ASY675 Radiative Forcing (W/m2)

DSP No.

Mean Mean Mean Mean TOA BOA

NDP

1.
0.402 0.561 0.937 0.692 ‒6.64 ‒23.68

DSP
0.854 0.137 0.970 0.736 ‒16.81 ‒39.60

NDP

2.
0.451 0.219 0.969 0.724 ‒10.09 ‒22.30

DSP
1.008 0.099 0.975 0.738 ‒20.71 ‒45.15
Perturbation to Climate
 Indirect effects
Change in cloud formation
 Change in cloud coverage
Change of cloud albedo
Warming / Cooling of the atmosphere
 Atmospheric Aerosols

Aerosols are suspension of solid and liquid particles in the air.

Processes by which aerosols affect clouds: The polluted cloud contains
eight times as many droplets of half the size, twice the surface area, twice
the optical depth, and higher reflectivity than the natural cloud (Toon 2000)
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 Increase in aerosols

Increase in cloud droplet number

Change in reflectivity (albedo)
Clouds Formation

When water vapor in the air becomes liquid water or ice crystals

As water evaporates from an area of Earth's surface, the air over that area
becomes moist. Moist air is lighter than the surrounding dry air, creating an
unstable situation. When enough moist air has accumulated, all the moist air
rises as a single packet, without mixing with the surrounding air. As more moist
air forms along the surface, the process repeats, resulting in a series of discrete
packets of moist air rising to form clouds.

This process occurs when one or more of three possible lifting agents—
cyclonic/frontal, convective, or orographic—causes air containing invisible 
water vapor to rise and cool to its dew point, the temperature at which the air
becomes saturated. The main mechanism behind this process is 
adiabatic cooling.

 Atmospheric pressure decreases with altitude, so the rising air expands in a

6]

process that expends energyand causes the air to cool, which makes water
vapor condense into cloud.[7] Water vapor in saturated air is normally attracted
to condensation nuclei such as dust and salt particles that are small enough to
be held aloft by normal circulation of the air.
Adiabatic cooling occurs when the pressure on an adiabatically isolated system is
decreased, allowing it to expand, thus causing it to do work on its surroundings.
When the pressure applied on a parcel of air is reduced, the air in the parcel is
allowed to expand; as the volume increases, the temperature falls as its internal
energy decreases. Adiabatic cooling occurs in the Earth's
atmosphere with orographic lifting and lee waves, and this can
form pileus or lenticular clouds.

.
In practice, no process is truly adiabatic. Many processes rely on a large difference
in time scales of the process of interest and the rate of heat dissipation across a
system boundary, and thus are approximated by using an adiabatic assumption.
There is always some heat loss, as no perfect insulators exist.
The water droplets in a cloud have a normal radius
of about 0.002 mm (0.00008 in).

The droplets may collide to form larger droplets, which remain aloft as long as the
velocity of the rising air within the cloud is equal to or greater than the terminal
velocity of the droplets.

For non-convective cloud, the altitude at which condensation begins to happen is

called the lifted condensation level (LCL), which roughly determines the height of the
cloud base.

Free convective clouds generally form at the altitude of the convective

condensation level (CCL).

Water vapor in saturated air is normally attracted to condensation nuclei such

as salt particles that are small enough to be held aloft by normal circulation of the
air. If the condensation process occurs below the freezing level in the troposphere,
the nuclei help transform the vapor into very small water droplets. Clouds that form
just above the freezing level are composed mostly of supercooled liquid droplets,
while those that condense out at higher altitudes where the air is much colder
generally take the form of ice crystals. An absence of sufficient condensation
particles at and above the condensation level causes the rising air to become
supersaturated and the formation of cloud tends to be inhibite
 Why Aerosols is important to understand the
Weather, specially for Indian Monsoon
The influence of absorbing aerosols over these monsoon-dominated regions has
been shown to alter long-term rainfall patterns [Menon et al., 2002].
• Dimming Effect
Through general circulation model (GCM) simulations, it has been shown that
aerosol-induced surface dimming over the Indian Ocean results in less
evaporation from the ocean surface, thereby reducing moisture inflow into South
Asia which in turn causes weakening of the monsoon rainfall [Ramanathan et al.,
2005].

• Elevated Heat Pump

On the other hand, Lau et al., [2008] and Lau and Kim, [2006] have recently
proposed the Elevated Heat Pump (EHP) hypothesis, suggesting that desert dust,
mixed with soot aerosols over northern India and the foothills of the Himalayas,
may cause enhanced heating in the middle/upper troposphere may further lead to
the strengthening of the temperature gradient, thus resulting in the advancement
of the monsoon rainfall in early summer. .

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