Lake Spray Aerosol: A Chemical Signature from Individual Ambient Particles

Aerosol production from wave breaking on freshwater lakes, including the Laurentian Great Lakes, is poorly understood in comparison to sea spray aerosol (SSA). Aerosols from freshwater have the potential to impact regional climate and public health. Herein, lake spray aerosol (LSA) is defined as aer...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEnvironmental science & technology Vol. 50; no. 18; pp. 9835 - 9845
Main Authors Axson, Jessica L, May, Nathaniel W, Colón-Bernal, Isabel D, Pratt, Kerri A, Ault, Andrew P
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States American Chemical Society 20.09.2016
Subjects
Aerosols
Analytical chemistry
Chemical oceanography
Laboratories
Lakes
Mass spectrometry
Michigan
Microscopy
Outdoor air quality
Particle Size
Physical chemistry
Seawater - chemistry
Lake Michigan
Great Lakes
USA, Illinois, Michigan L
North America, Great Lakes
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Summary:Aerosol production from wave breaking on freshwater lakes, including the Laurentian Great Lakes, is poorly understood in comparison to sea spray aerosol (SSA). Aerosols from freshwater have the potential to impact regional climate and public health. Herein, lake spray aerosol (LSA) is defined as aerosol generated from freshwater through bubble bursting, analogous to SSA from seawater. A chemical signature for LSA was determined from measurements of ambient particles collected on the southeastern shore of Lake Michigan during an event (July 6–8, 2015) with wave heights up to 3.1 m. For comparison, surface freshwater was collected, and LSA were generated in the laboratory. Single particle microscopy and mass spectrometry analysis of field and laboratory-generated samples show that LSA particles are primarily calcium (carbonate) with lower concentrations of other inorganic ions and organic material. Laboratory number size distributions show ultrafine and accumulation modes at 53 (±1) and 276 (±8) nm, respectively. This study provides the first chemical signature for LSA. LSA composition is shown to be coupled to Great Lakes water chemistry (Ca2+ > Mg2+ > Na+ > K+) and distinct from SSA. Understanding LSA physicochemical properties will improve assessment of LSA impacts on regional air quality, climate, and health.
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ISSN:0013-936X
1520-5851
DOI:10.1021/acs.est.6b01661