ORCID Profile
0000-0002-7164-1660
Current Organisation
University of Liverpool
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Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 14-03-2019
Abstract: Abstract. The elemental composition of organic material in environmental s les – including atmospheric organic aerosol, dissolved organic matter, and other complex mixtures – provides insights into their sources and environmental processing. However, standard analytical techniques for measuring elemental ratios typically require large s le sizes (milligrams of material or more). Here we characterize a method for measuring elemental ratios in environmental s les, requiring only micrograms of material, using a small-volume nebulizer (SVN). The technique uses ultrasonic nebulization of s les to generate aerosol particles (100–300 nm diameter), which are then analyzed using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS). We demonstrate that the technique generates aerosol from complex organic mixtures with minimal changes to the elemental composition of the organic material and that quantification is possible using internal standards (e.g., NH415NO3). S le volumes of 2–4 µL with total solution concentrations of at least 0.2 g L−1 form sufficient particle mass for elemental ratio measurement by the AMS, despite only a small fraction (∼ 0.1 %) of the s le forming fine particles after nebulization (with the remainder ending up as larger droplets). The method was applied to aerosol filter extracts from the field and laboratory, as well as to the polysaccharide fraction of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from the North Pacific Ocean. In the case of aerosol particles, the mass spectra and elemental ratios from the SVN–AMS agree with those from online AMS s ling. Similarly, for DOM, the elemental ratios determined from the SVN–AMS agree with those determined using combustion analysis. The SVN–AMS provides a platform for the rapid quantitative analysis of the elemental composition of complex organic mixtures and non-refractory inorganic salts from microgram s les with applications that include analysis of aerosol extracts and terrestrial, aquatic, and atmospheric dissolved organic matter.
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 23-10-2018
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 23-10-2018
DOI: 10.5194/AMT-2018-326
Abstract: Abstract. The elemental composition of organic material in environmental s les – including atmospheric organic aerosol, dissolved organic matter, and other complex mixtures – provides insights into their sources and environmental processing. However, standard analytical techniques for measuring elemental ratios typically require large s le sizes (milligrams of material or more). Here we characterize a method for measuring elemental ratios in environmental s les, requiring only micrograms of material, using a Small Volume Nebulizer (SVN). The technique uses ultrasonic nebulization of s les to generate aerosol particles (100–300 nm diameter), which are then analyzed using an aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS). We demonstrate that the technique generates aerosol from complex organic mixtures with minimal changes to the elemental composition of the organic and that quantification is possible using internal standards (e.g., NH415NO3). S le volumes of 2–4 uL with total solution concentrations of at least 0.2–g/L form sufficient particle mass for elemental ratio measurement by the AMS, despite only a small fraction (~ 0.1 %) of the s le forming fine particles while the remainder end up as larger droplets. The method was applied to aerosol filter extracts from the field and laboratory, as well as to dissolved organic matter (DOM) from the North Pacific Ocean. In the case of aerosol particles, the mass spectra and elemental ratios from the SVN-AMS agree with those from online AMS s ling similarly, for DOM, the elemental ratios determined from the SVN-AMS agree with those determined using combustion analysis. The SVN-AMS provides a platform for the rapid quantitative analysis of the elemental composition of complex organic mixtures and non-refractory inorganic salts from microgram s les with applications that include analysis of aerosol extracts, and terrestrial and atmospheric dissolved organic matter.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
No related grants have been discovered for Christopher Follett.