Impacts of transported background ozone on California air quality during the ARCTAS-CARB period – a multi-scale modeling study

Huang, Min; Carmichael, Gregory R.; Adhikary, Bhupesh; Kulkarni, S.; Cheng, Yafang; Wei, Chao; Tang, Youhua; Parrish, D. D.; Oltmans, S. J.; D’Allura, A.; Kaduwela, A. P.; Cai, Chenxia; Weinheimer, A. J.; Wong, Min Minnie; Pierce, R. Bradley; Al-Saadi, J. A.; Streets, David G.; Zhang, Q.

doi:10.5194/acp-10-6947-2010

Cited by 64 publications

(87 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…In their study of aircraft data from the CalNex 2010 experiment, Nowak et al (2012) found that ammonia emissions from dairy facilities in Southern California have a significant effect on nitrate aerosol formation, shifting the NH 4 NO 3 equilibrium towards the particle phase and resulting in higher nitrate aerosol concentrations downwind of the dairy facilities. They also compared the CalNex aircraft data to NEI 2005 and CARB-ARCTAS 08 (Huang et al, 2010) emissions inventories of ammonia in the South Coast Air Basin and found that both emissions inventories underestimate ammonia emissions relative to emissions estimates derived from the aircraft data. In the NEI 2005 inventory, which is used in GEOS-Chem, ammonia emissions from automobiles and dairy facilities in this region are 38 and 1 metric tonnes per day, respectively, compared to 56 and 11 tonnes per day, respectively, in the CARB-ARCTAS 08 inventory.…”

Section: Nitrate Under-prediction In Californiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulation of nitrate, sulfate, and ammonium aerosols over the United States

et al. 2012

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Abstract. Atmospheric concentrations of inorganic gases and aerosols (nitrate, sulfate, and ammonium) are simulated for 2009 over the United States using the chemical transport model GEOS-Chem. Predicted aerosol concentrations are compared with surface-level measurement data from the Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE), the Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNET), and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Sulfate predictions nationwide are in reasonably good agreement with observations, while nitrate and ammonium are over-predicted in the East and Midwest, but underpredicted in California, where observed concentrations are the highest in the country. Over-prediction of nitrate in the East and Midwest is consistent with results of recent studies, which suggest that nighttime nitric acid formation by heterogeneous hydrolysis of N 2 O 5 is over-predicted based on current values of the N 2 O 5 uptake coefficient, γ , onto aerosols. After reducing the value of γ by a factor of 10, predicted nitrate levels in the US Midwest and East still remain higher than those measured, and over-prediction of nitrate in this region remains unexplained. Comparison of model predictions with satellite measurements of ammonia from the Tropospheric Emissions Spectrometer (TES) indicates that ammonia emissions in GEOS-Chem are underestimated in California and that the nationwide seasonality applied to ammonia emissions in GEOS-Chem does not represent California very well, particularly underestimating winter emissions. An ammonia sensitivity study indicates that GEOS-Chem simulation of nitrate is ammonia-limited in southern California and much of the state, suggesting that an underestimate of ammonia emissions is likely the main cause for the underprediction of nitrate aerosol in many areas of California. An approximate doubling of ammonia emissions is needed to reproduce observed nitrate concentrations in southern California and in other ammonia sensitive areas of California. However, even a tenfold increase in ammonia emissions yields predicted nitrate concentrations that are still biased low in the central valley of California. The under-prediction of nitrate aerosol in the central valley of California may arise in part from an under-prediction of both ammonia and nitric acid in this region. Since nitrate aerosols are particularly sensitive to mixed layer depths, owing to the gas-particle equilibrium, the nitrate under-prediction could also arise in part from a potential regional overestimate of GEOS-5 mixed layer depths in the central valley due to unresolved topography in this region.

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Section: Nitrate Under-prediction In Californiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulation of nitrate, sulfate, and ammonium aerosols over the United States

et al. 2012

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“…Further improvements are therefore needed in the observing systems that provide information on the three-dimensional pollutant concentrations. For example, such improvements are needed to better quantify the long-range pollutant transport of Saharan dust to Southern Europe and Asian brown dust cloud to the US West Coast (Huang et al, 2010).…”

Section: Boundary Conditions and Nesting Of Cwf Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of operational, regional-scale, chemical weather forecasting models in Europe

et al. 2012

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Abstract. Numerical models that combine weather forecasting and atmospheric chemistry are here referred to as chemical weather forecasting models. Eighteen operational chemical weather forecasting models on regional and continental scales in Europe are described and compared in this article. Topics discussed in this article include how weather forecasting and atmospheric chemistry models are integrated into chemical weather forecasting systems, how physical processes are incorporated into the models through parameterization schemes, how the model architecture affects the predicted variables, and how air chemistry and aerosol processes are formulated. In addition, we discuss sensitivity analysis and evaluation of the models, user operational requirements, such as model availability and documentation, and output availability and dissemination. In this manner, this article allows for the evaluation of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the various modelling systems and modelling approaches. Finally, this article highlights the most prominent gaps of knowledge for chemical weather forecasting models and suggests potential priorities for future research Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union. J. Kukkonen et al.: A review of operational, regional-scale, chemical weather forecasting models in Europedirections, for the following selected focus areas: emission inventories, the integration of numerical weather prediction and atmospheric chemical transport models, boundary conditions and nesting of models, data assimilation of the various chemical species, improved understanding and parameterization of physical processes, better evaluation of models against data and the construction of model ensembles.

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“…In reality, background CO mixing ratios are likely to vary in time as a result of long-range transport from Asia (e.g. Jaffe et al, 1999;Huang et al, 2010). WRF-Chem was not coupled with a global model prediction system since the primary purpose was to predict plume locations to guide aircraft operations rather than simulate exact magnitudes.…”

Section: Operational Forecastingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Seaman et al, 1995;Dabub et al, 1999;Jacobson, 2001;Bao et al, 2008;Jin et al, 2010;Huang et al, 2010;Michelson et al, 2010;Pfister et al, 2011) have improved the understanding of how meteorological processes in California affect the spatial variations and chemical transformation of pollutants. Various routine measurements and several special studies in the Central Valley of California have shown that pollutants emitted from Sacramento, California during the summer are frequently transported by the thermally-driven upslope flows that draw the urban air towards the northeast over the foothills of the Sierra Nevada (Murphy et al, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transport and mixing patterns over Central California during the carbonaceous aerosol and radiative effects study (CARES)

et al. 2012

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Abstract. We describe the synoptic and regional-scale meteorological conditions that affected the transport and mixing of trace gases and aerosols in the vicinity of Sacramento, California during June 2010 when the Carbonaceous Aerosol and Radiative Effects Study (CARES) was conducted. The meteorological measurements collected by various instruments deployed during the campaign and the performance of the chemistry version of the Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF-Chem) are both discussed. WRF-Chem was run daily during the campaign to forecast the spatial and temporal variation of carbon monoxide emitted from 20 anthropogenic source regions in California to guide aircraft sampling. The model is shown to reproduce the overall circulations and boundary-layer characteristics in the region, although errors in the upslope wind speed and boundary-layer depth contribute to differences in the observed and simulated carbon monoxide. Thermally-driven upslope flows that transported pollutants from Sacramento over the foothills of the Sierra Nevada occurred every afternoon, except during three periods when the passage of mid-tropospheric troughs disrupted the regional-scale flow patterns. The meteorological conditions after the passage of the third trough were the most favorable for photochemistry and likely formation of secondary organic aerosols. Meteorological measurements and model forecasts indicate that the Sacramento pollutant plume was likely transported over a downwind site that collected trace gas and aerosol measurements during 23 time periods; however, direct transport occurred during only eight of these periods. The model also showed that emissions from the San Francisco Bay area transported by intrusions of marine air contributed a large fraction of the carbon monoxide in the vicinity of Sacramento, suggesting that this source likely affects local chemistry. Contributions from other sources of pollutants, such as those in the Sacramento Valley and San Joaquin Valley, were relatively low. Aerosol layering in the free troposphere was observed during the morning by an airborne Lidar. WRF-Chem forecasts showed that mountain venting processes contributed to aged pollutants aloft in the valley atmosphere that are then entrained into the growing boundary layer the subsequent day.

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Impacts of transported background ozone on California air quality during the ARCTAS-CARB period – a multi-scale modeling study

Cited by 64 publications

References 32 publications

Simulation of nitrate, sulfate, and ammonium aerosols over the United States

Simulation of nitrate, sulfate, and ammonium aerosols over the United States

A review of operational, regional-scale, chemical weather forecasting models in Europe

Transport and mixing patterns over Central California during the carbonaceous aerosol and radiative effects study (CARES)

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