Intermediate Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Residential Solid Fuel Combustion Based on Field Measurements in Rural China

Abstract

Residential solid fuel combustion (RSFC) is a key cause of air pollution in China. In these serial studies, field measurements of RSFC from 166 rural households in eastern China were conducted to update the database of emission factors (EFs) and chemical profiles of gaseous and particulate organic pollutants, and the present study focuses on the intermediate volatile organic compounds (IVOCs), which are precursors of secondary organic aerosol (SOA). The results show that the averaged EFs of IVOCs (EFIVOC) for crop straw, fuelwood, and coal are 550.7 ± 397.9, 416.1 ± 249.5, and 361.9 ± 308.0 mg/kg, respectively, which are among the EFIVOC of gasoline vehicle, diesel vehicle, non-road machinery, and heavy fuel oil vessel, and are significantly affected by fuel, stove, and combustion efficiency. The percentages of normal alkanes (n-alkanes), branched alkanes (b-alkanes), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and unresolved complex mixture from RSFC are 3.5 ± 1.6, 8.0 ± 3.7, 17.6 ± 6.7, and 70.9 ± 8.1%, respectively, and the compositions are featured by lower b-alkanes and higher PAHs than those of vehicle sources. The proportions of some individual n-alkanes and PAHs (such as n-C12–n-C15, naphthalene, and its alkyl substituents) can be used as indicators to differentiate RSFC from vehicle sources, while methoxyphenols can be used to distinguish biomass burning from coal combustion. Based on China’s energy statistics, the total IVOC emissions from RSFC in 2014 were 175.9 Gg. These data will help to update the IVOC emission inventory and improve the estimates of SOA production in China.

Process-based and Observation-constrained SOA Simulations in China: The Role of Semivolatile and Intermediate-Volatility Organic Compounds and OH Levels

“…Li et al, 2019a). The emission factors of IVOCs from residential combustion vary in a wide range and are sensitive to the fuel types and combustion conditions (Cai et al, 2019;Qian et al, 2021). We tested seven-fold IVOC emissions from the residential sector in the Cp_R1+2+3 simulation to eliminate the potential seasonal bias of IVOC emissions.…”

Chemical Characterization, Source, and SOA Production of Intermediate Volatile Organic Compounds during Haze Episodes in North China

“…IVOCs samples were analyzed by thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC/MS) method (TD: Sciences Optic-4, Shimadzu, GC/MS: Thermo Trace 1300/ISQ 7000, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA). A detailed description of the analysis protocols and quantification methods for IVOCs can be found in previous studies [10,13,15]. Generally, four parts of IVOCs, including normal alkanes (n-alkanes, nC 12 -nC 22 ), branched alkanes (b-alkanes), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and residue unresolved complex mixture (R-UCM), were identified and quantified in this study.…”

“…Meanwhile, the PM 2.5 composition was also analyzed. The concentrations of OC and EC were measured by a thermal-optical carbon analyzer (Sunset Laboratory Inc., Portland, OR, USA) with the IMPROVE A method [13]. Moreover, the filter sample was extracted with ultrasonic extraction and filtered, and then water-soluble ions in PM 2.5 , including Na + , K + , Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , Cl − , NO 3 − , SO 4 2− , and NH 4 + , were analyzed by ion chromatography (IC, ICS 6000, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA) based on the water extraction.…”

“…In recent years, researchers have paid increasing attention to IVOCs. Most of the research has focused on the chemical characterization of IVOC in various source emissions such as biomass burning (BB) and coal combustion (CC) [13,14], gasoline vehicles (GV) [15], diesel vehicles (DV) [16,17], heavy fuel oil vessels (HFOVs) [18], non-road construction machinery (NRCM) [19], and aircraft [20]. Additionally, some studies have investigated concentration levels and chemical characterization of IVOCs in an ambient atmosphere [21,22].…”

Cytotoxicity analysis of biomass combustion particles in human pulmonary alveolar epithelial cells on an air–liquid interface/dynamic culture platform

“…Recent studies have examined the cytotoxicity and molecular mechanisms of solid fuel combustion particles in lung cells [ 17 , 18 ]. However, in vitro cytotoxicity analyses were generally performed using cells cultured under traditional submerged conditions, wherein particles are suspended in the culture medium containing submerged cells.…”