Spatial distributions of oxygenated organic compounds (dicarboxylic acids, fatty acids, and levoglucosan) in marine aerosols over the western Pacific and off the coast of East Asia: Continental outflow of organic aerosols during the ACE‐Asia campaign

Abstract

Aerosol sampling for major oxygenated organic compounds (dicarboxylic acids, fatty acids, and levoglucosan) was conducted from 15 March to 19 April 2001 on board the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration R/V Ronald H. Brown over the western North Pacific, the East China Sea, and the Sea of Japan, as part of the Asian Pacific Regional Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE‐Asia) campaign. During the cruise, aerosol particles were collected on quartz fiber filters using a high‐volume air sampler. Diacids were also collected using an annular denuder sampling system to assess their gas‐particle partitioning. Concentrations of total diacids, total fatty acids, and levoglucosan were found to be higher off the coasts of East Asia than in the remote Pacific. Contributions of these organic compounds to total organic carbon and total organic matter (OM) were calculated to be 9.8 ± 2.3% and 19.0 ± 4.8%, respectively, assuming OM to be organic carbon × 1.6. Diacid concentrations were highly correlated with nss‐SO 42− and NO 3−, which originate from anthropogenic sources over East Asia. The temporal variations and chain‐length distributions of fatty acids suggest that atmospheric transport of terrestrial organic materials is important off the coast of the continent. C 2 − C 5 diacids were present predominantly in the particulate phase. The relative abundances of C 2 − C 5 diacids stayed almost unchanged throughout the cruise, suggesting that deposition is more important than chemical decomposition as a sink of diacids and that they are relatively stable end products in the atmosphere.