A new smog chamber system for atmospheric multiphase chemistry study: design and characterization

Abstract

Multiphase chemistry is an important pathway for the formation of secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) in the atmosphere. In this study, an indoor 2 m3 Teflon chamber system (Aerosol multIphase chemistry Research chamber, AIR) was developed and characterized to specifically simulate atmospheric multiphase chemistry processes. The temperature and humidity controls, diurnal variation simulation, and seed particle generation unit in this chamber system were designed to meet the needs of simulating multiphase atmospheric chemical reactions. The AIR chamber is able to accurately control temperature (2.5–31 ± 0.15 ∘C) and relative humidity (RH <2 %–>95 % ± 0.75 %) over a relatively broad range. In addition, an RH regulation module inside the chamber was designed to simulate the diurnal variation of ambient atmospheric RH. The aerosol generation unit is able to generate pre-deliquescent seed particles with an organic coating across a wide range of phase states or morphologies. The organic coating thickness of the aerosols within the chamber can be precisely controlled through adjusting the condensation temperature, further helping to elucidate the roles of seed particles in multiphase chemical reactions. The inner walls of the AIR chamber are passivated to reduce the wall loss rates of reactive gases. Yield experiments of α-pinene ozonolysis with and without seed particles combined with a box model simulation demonstrate the high-quality performance of secondary aerosol formation simulation using the AIR chamber.