Aerosol presursors in Australian marine environments

Overview

https://research.qut.edu.au/environment/https://research.qut.edu.au/environment/

Aerosols, tiny solid or liquid particles, play an important role in global climate regulation, firstly, by scattering and absorbing incoming solar radiation and, secondly, by their ability to take up water vapor from the atmosphere and serve as nuclei for cloud droplet formation (Cloud Condensation Nuclei (CCN)).

With oceans covering 71% of the Earth’s surface, marine aerosols present a significant proportion of the global aerosol budget. Production of particles in the marine environment occurs via 2 pathways: 1) wave breaking and bubble bursting, which results in primary particles composed mainly of sea salt and biogenic organic matter, and 2) sea-air exchange of gaseous compounds produced by marine biota (phytoplankton, algae), in particular dimethyl sulphide (DMS) and iodine based compounds, and the subsequent new  particle formation from photo-oxidation of these gaseous precursors. Aerosols from these two different sources will have different composition, size and number concentration, and, therefore different ability to act as seeds for clouds.

Research activities

The main gaseous compunds that are involved in new particle for mation (i.e. the main aerosol precursors) are sulfuric acid, methanesulfonic acid and iodic acid and they are going to be the focus of this project. They are measured in the atmosphere by a real-time chemical ionisation mass spectrometry (CIMS).

This project will involve the following:

1) analysis of the existing datasets collected at the Great Barrier Reef and Timor Sea

2) participation in a fieldcampaign at the Kennaook/Cape Grim (Tasmania) monitoring station and/or voyage onboard RV Investigator using Chemical Ionisation Mass spectrometer (CIMS) to measure aerosol precursors.

While the instrumental focus of this project is CIMS, the student will have an opportunity to use other instruments for chemical and physical characterisation of aerosols (e.g. aerosol mass spectrometer, scanning mobility particle sizer) and analyse their data.

Outcomes

This research will allow novel insights into chemical composition and concentrations of compounds involved in new particle formation and their representation around different marine environments around Australia. Comparison with data from other aerosol instruments will allow us to investigate the link between aerosol precursors concentration and new particle formation.

Skills and experience

Ideally, you should be a student with a background in either of the following:

• chemistry
• physics
• earth science
• environmental engineering

and have a strong interest in:

• analysis of large datasets
• measurement techniques
• fieldwork.

Scholarships

You may be eligible to apply for a research scholarship.

Explore our research scholarships

Keywords

• aerosols
• analytical chemistry
• mass spectrometry
• atmosphere
• climate

Contact

Contact the supervisor for more information.