| Title: | Emission of volatile organic compounds from residential biomass burning and their rapid chemical transformations |
| Author(s): | Desservettaz M; Pikridas M; Stavroulas I; Bougiatioti A; Liakakou E; Hatzianastassiou N; Sciare J; Mihalopoulos N; Bourtsoukidis E; |
| Address: | "Climate and Atmosphere Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, Nicosia 2121, Cyprus. Electronic address: m.desservettaz@cyi.ac.cy. Climate and Atmosphere Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, Nicosia 2121, Cyprus. Climate and Atmosphere Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, Nicosia 2121, Cyprus; Institute for Environmental Research and Sustainable Development, National Observatory of Athens, P. Penteli, Athens 15236, Greece. Institute for Environmental Research and Sustainable Development, National Observatory of Athens, P. Penteli, Athens 15236, Greece. Laboratory of Meteorology and Climatology, Department of Physics, University of Ioannina, Ioannina 45110, Greece. Climate and Atmosphere Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, Nicosia 2121, Cyprus. Electronic address: e.bourtsoukidis@cyi.ac.cy" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166592 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1879-1026 (Electronic) 0048-9697 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "Biomass combustion releases a complex array of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) that pose significant challenges to air quality and human health. Although biomass burning has been extensively studied at ecosystem levels, understanding the atmospheric transformation and impact on air quality of emissions in urban environments remains challenging due to complex sources and burning materials. In this study, we investigate the VOC emission rates and atmospheric chemical processing of predominantly wood burning emissions in a small urban centre in Greece. Ioannina is situated in a valley within the Dinaric Alps and experiences intense atmospheric pollution accumulation during winter due to its topography and high wood burning activity. During pollution event days, the ambient mixing ratios of key VOC species were found to be similar to those reported for major urban centres worldwide. Positive matrix factorisation (PMF) analysis revealed that biomass burning was the dominant emission source (>50 %), representing two thirds of OH reactivity, which indicates a highly reactive atmospheric mixture. Calculated OH reactivity ranges from 5 s(-1) to an unprecedented 278 s(-1), and averages at 93 +/- 66 s(-1) at 9 PM, indicating the presence of exceptionally reactive VOCs. The highly pronounced photochemical formation of organic acids coincided with the formation of ozone, highlighting the significance of secondary formation of pollutants in poorly ventilated urban areas. Our findings underscore the pressing need to transition from wood burning to environmentally friendly sources of energy in poorly ventilated urban areas, in order to improve air quality and safeguard public health" |
| Keywords: | Biomass burning Emission factors Source apportionment Urban air quality VOCs; |
| Notes: | "PublisherDesservettaz, Maximilien Pikridas, Michael Stavroulas, Iasonas Bougiatioti, Aikaterini Liakakou, Eleni Hatzianastassiou, Nikolaos Sciare, Jean Mihalopoulos, Nikolaos Bourtsoukidis, Efstratios eng Netherlands 2023/08/29 Sci Total Environ. 2023 Aug 26; 903:166592. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166592" |
