Air pollution causes major health problems and is responsible for 8 million deaths annually worldwide. Reactive organic chemicals (ROCs) are the key precursors that make up smog. In the past, research on the emissions of ROCs has focused primarily on combustion sources from cars and trucks. However, non-combustion ROC sources such as roofing and paving materials, building materials, and consumer products and packaging are now understood to play a larger role in air quality. In spite of this recognition, reliable data on the magnitude and chemical makeup of ROC emissions from non-combustion sources is very limited. Such information is critical to understanding their impact on human health and the environment. The goal of this project is to address this need by investigating the emissions of complex mixtures of ROCs from non-combustion sources. The research will be performed using specially designed reaction chambers using cutting-edge analytical techniques and tools. Successful completion of this project will benefit society by increasing our understanding of pollutant emissions that impact both outdoor and indoor air quality. Further benefits to society from this project result from education and training opportunities to graduate students, undergraduate students, and high school interns. The investigator will promote diversity and enhance the involvement of under-represented groups in science and engineering through engagement in Yale's K-12 outreach activities.
Emissions from non-combustion sources are increasingly understood to play a larger role in air quality. The goal of this project is to address knowledge gaps on emissions of gas-phase reactive organic compounds (ROCs) from emerging non-combustion sources and their subsequent chemical transformations in urban air. To achieve this goal, the PI and collaborators at Aerodyne Research will focus on the characterization of ROCs generated by mixtures of known, understudied, and unknown organic chemicals. The team will carry out experiments in emission and reaction chambers using a suite of state-of-the-art high-resolution mass spectrometry and gas/liquid chromatography. The research will include ?bottom-up? emissions experiments to quantify the magnitude and chemical composition of emissions from paving and roofing asphalt materials, two of the most important non-combustion sources of ROCs. A major focus of these experiments will be on poorly constrained emissions pathways and compound classes. In addition, the team will also conduct experiments in an oxidation flow reactor to 1) determine the oxidation products and secondary organic aerosol yields from model and relevant precursor mixtures emitted from non-combustion sources, and 2) identify key single precursors present in these complex mixtures. The PI will pursue active collaboration with emissions inventory and modeling experts at the U.S. EPA and other stakeholders to disseminate information and data resulting from this study. The successful completion of this project has potential for transformative impact in air pollution management through the development of new insight and fundamental knowledge on the emission, fate, and atmospheric chemistry of ROCs emitted from non-combustion sources.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
