Long-term observations of tropospheric particle number size distributions and equivalent black carbon mass concentrations in the German Ultrafine Aerosol Network (GUAN)

Birmili, W.; Weinhold, Kay; Rasch, Fabian; Sonntag, A.; Sun, Jia; Merkel, Maik; Wiedensohler, Alfred; Bastian, Susanne; Schladitz, A.; Löschau, G.; Cyrys, Josef; Pitz, Mike; Gu, Jian‐Wei; Kusch, Thomas; Flentje, H.; Quaß, Ulrich; Kaminski, Heinz; Kuhlbusch, Thomas A. J.; Meinhardt, F.; Schwerin, Andreas; Bath, Olaf; Ries, Ludwig; Gerwig, Holger; Wirtz, Klaus; Fiebig, Markus

doi:10.5194/essd-8-355-2016

Cited by 76 publications

(84 citation statements)

References 68 publications

(75 reference statements)

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“…The station is situated on flat terrain, and no larger sources of pollution lie within close proximity to the station. Particle number size distributions at dry conditions were measured using a twin differential mobility particle sizer (TDMPS) (Birmili et al, 1999(Birmili et al, , 2016. The major ions and carbon species in the aerosol have been continuously measured from daily filter samples since 2003 (Spindler et al, 2013).…”

Section: Aerosol Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parameterizing cloud condensation nuclei concentrations during HOPE

et al. 2016

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Abstract. An aerosol model was used to simulate the generation and transport of aerosols over Germany during the HD(CP) 2 Observational Prototype Experiment (HOPE) field campaign of 2013. The aerosol number concentrations and size distributions were evaluated against observations, which shows satisfactory agreement in the magnitude and temporal variability of the main aerosol contributors to cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) concentrations. From the modelled aerosol number concentrations, number concentrations of CCN were calculated as a function of vertical velocity using a comprehensive aerosol activation scheme which takes into account the influence of aerosol chemical and physical properties on CCN formation. There is a large amount of spatial variability in aerosol concentrations; however the resulting CCN concentrations vary significantly less over the domain. Temporal variability is large in both aerosols and CCN. A parameterization of the CCN number concentrations is developed for use in models. The technique involves defining a number of best fit functions to capture the dependence of CCN on vertical velocity at different pressure levels. In this way, aerosol chemical and physical properties as well as thermodynamic conditions are taken into account in the new CCN parameterization. A comparison between the parameterization and the CCN estimates from the model data shows excellent agreement. This parameterization may be used in other regions and time periods with a similar aerosol load; furthermore, the technique demonstrated here may be employed in regions dominated by different aerosol species.

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Section: Aerosol Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parameterizing cloud condensation nuclei concentrations during HOPE

et al. 2016

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“…In this study, the calculation of aerosol optical properties was performed on the basis of Bohren and Huffman (1983). The complex refractive index, the hygroscopicity, and the mixing of the aerosol particles are needed to compare calculated optical properties with measured ones.…”

Section: Airborne In Situ Aerosol Optical Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The equation to derive the particle light scattering efficiency for coated particles is provided by Bohren and Huffman (1983) and Dombrovsky (2011).…”

Section: Airborne In Situ Aerosol Optical Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Consequently, aerosol particles have both a natural and an anthropogenic influence on weather and climate (IPCC, 2013). The direct climatic effect of aerosols is based on their radiative cooling or heating of the atmosphere due to scattering and absorption of solar radiation (Bohren and Huffman, 1983;Chauvigné et al, 2016;Seinfeld and Pandis, 2006). The estimate of the radiative forcing by aerosol-radiation interaction of −0.35 W m −2 is very uncertain within the borders of −0.85 to +0.15 W m −2 (IPCC, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In particular, a large number of long-term observations exist on the ground. For instance, in Germany the German Ultra-fine Aerosol Network (GUAN; Birmili et al, 2016) is operative. The Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) network includes a large number of operating stations (http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/arep/ gaw/measurements.html).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Helicopter-borne observations of the continental background aerosol in combination with remote sensing and ground-based measurements

et al. 2018

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Abstract. This paper examines the representativeness of ground-based in situ measurements for the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and conducts a closure study between airborne in situ and ground-based lidar measurements up to an altitude of 2300 m. The related measurements were carried out in a field campaign within the framework of the HighDefinition Clouds and Precipitation for Advancing Climate Prediction (HD(CP) 2 ) Observational Prototype Experiment (HOPE) in September 2013 in a rural background area of central Europe.The helicopter-borne probe ACTOS (Airborne Cloud and Turbulence Observation System) provided measurements of the aerosol particle number size distribution (PNSD), the aerosol particle number concentration (PNC), the number concentration of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN-NC), and meteorological atmospheric parameters (e.g., temperature and relative humidity). These measurements were supported by the ground-based 3 + 2 wavelength polarization lidar system Polly XT , which provided profiles of the particle backscatter coefficient (σ bsc ) for three wavelengths (355, 532, and 1064 nm). Particle extinction coefficient (σ ext ) profiles were obtained by using a fixed backscatter-to-extinction ratio (also lidar ratio, LR). A new approach was used to determine profiles of CCN-NC for continental aerosol. The results of this new approach were consistent with the airborne in situ measurements within the uncertainties.In terms of representativeness, the PNSD measurements on the ground showed a good agreement with the measurements provided with ACTOS for lower altitudes. The ground-based measurements of PNC and CCN-NC are representative of the PBL when the PBL is well mixed. Locally isolated new particle formation events on the ground or at the top of the PBL led to vertical variability in the cases presented here and ground-based measurements are not entirely representative of the PBL.Based on Mie theory (Mie, 1908), optical aerosol properties under ambient conditions for different altitudes were determined using the airborne in situ measurements and were compared with the lidar measurements. The investigation of the optical properties shows that on average the airbornebased particle light backscatter coefficient is 50.1 % smaller for 1064 nm, 27.4 % smaller for 532 nm, and 29.5 % smaller for 355 nm than the measurements of the lidar system. These results are quite promising, since in situ measurement-based Mie calculations of the particle light backscattering are scarce and the modeling is quite challenging. In contrast, for the particle light extinction coefficient we found a good agreement. The airborne-based particle light extinction coefficient was just 8.2 % larger for 532 nm and 3 % smaller for 355 nm, for an assumed LR of 55 sr. The particle light extinction coefficient for 1064 nm was derived with a LR of 30 sr. For this wavelength, the airborne-based particle light extinction coefficient is 5.2 % smaller than the lidar measurements. For the first time, the lidar ratio of 30 sr for 1064 nm was det...

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Contributions of volatile and nonvolatile compounds (at 300°C) to condensational growth of atmospheric nanoparticles: An assessment based on 8.5 years of observations at the Central Europe background site Melpitz

et al. 2017

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Long‐term measurements of particle number size distributions in combination with thermodenuder analysis have been performed since July 2003 at the Central European station of Melpitz, Germany. Up to the end of 2011, 20% of all investigated days during the 8.5 years of measurements showed new particle formation and subsequent growth. To investigate the role of various chemical compound candidates for condensational nanoparticle growth, we focused on nucleation events in which the measured size distributions with and without thermodesorption both showed growth patterns (accounting for up to ~85% of all nucleation events). In this study, particulate compounds that volatilize at 300°C were specifically defined as “volatile,” in contrast to “nonvolatile” compounds, which remain in the particulate phase after being heated to 300°C. A strong correlation between ambient temperature and growth rate associated with volatile substances (except gaseous sulfuric acid) was found, which implies the importance of organics (possibly oxidized biogenic organic compounds) in particle growth at Melpitz. The contributions of the volatile compounds to the growth rate due to condensation of gaseous sulfuric acid and organics were found to be about 19% and 47%, respectively. The remaining ~25% was attributed to nonvolatile residuals, which appear to form gradually during the particle growth process and are characterized as extremely low‐volatility compounds. The growth rate associated with volatile components exhibited significant seasonal variation, with the highest value during summertime, whereas the growth rate associated with the nonvolatile fraction showed less fluctuation.

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Long-term observations of tropospheric particle number size distributions and equivalent black carbon mass concentrations in the German Ultrafine Aerosol Network (GUAN)

Cited by 76 publications

References 68 publications

Parameterizing cloud condensation nuclei concentrations during HOPE

Parameterizing cloud condensation nuclei concentrations during HOPE

Helicopter-borne observations of the continental background aerosol in combination with remote sensing and ground-based measurements

Contributions of volatile and nonvolatile compounds (at 300°C) to condensational growth of atmospheric nanoparticles: An assessment based on 8.5 years of observations at the Central Europe background site Melpitz

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