Depending on the source and relative humidity,
aerosols can have
different compositional, morphological, and viscoelastic properties.
Aerosol studies determining the relationship between these properties
and their combined effect on the climate and environment are important.
This work aims to correlate the 3D morphology, phase state, and viscoelastic
properties of selected single-component chemical systems found in
sea spray aerosol (SSA) that were substrate-deposited on a solid surface,
studied with atomic force microscopy (AFM). Specifically, two inorganic
salts (NaCl and MgSO4), four organic acids (malonic, glutaric,
azelaic, and palmitic acids), three saccharides (glucose, sucrose,
and raffinose), and lipopolysaccharide from Escherichia
coli were studied. Furthermore, three inorganic–organic
binary chemical mixtures (NaCl–malonic acid, NaCl–glucose,
and MgSO4–glucose) at 1:3 and 3:1 mass ratio were
studied. AFM imaging and force spectroscopy at 20% relative humidity
were performed to record 3D height images of individual particles
and measure force–distance plots, respectively. First, by utilizing
combined relative indentation depth (RID) and viscoelastic response
distance (VRD) data obtained from the force–distance plots,
we establish quantitative framework toward differentiation of the
solid, semisolid and liquid phase states of individual particles without
prior knowledge of their chemical identity. Second, we show that the
single particle aspect ratio (AR) of a wide range of compounds relevant
to SSA is a measure of the extent of the particle spreading as a result
of impaction with the solid substrate, which can be directly related
to the RID and VRD results. Thus, we demonstrate that a quick height
imaging and determination of a single particle AR can be used to assess
the phase state. Therefore, we introduce the ability to semiquantitatively
assess the phase states of individual substrate deposited particles
of SSA-relevant compounds, irrespective of the microscopy technique
used, which can subsequently be further validated by more quantitative
AFM force spectroscopy.