Sulfuric acid-amine nucleation in urban Beijing

New particle formation (NPF) is one of the major sources of atmospheric ultrafine particles. Due to the high aerosol and trace gas concentrations, the mechanism and governing factors for NPF in the polluted atmospheric boundary layer may be quite different from those in clean environments, which is however less understood. Herein, based on long-term atmospheric measurements from January 2018 to March 2019 in Beijing, the nucleation mechanism and the influences of H2SO4 concentration, amine concentrations, and aerosol concentration on NPF are quantified. The collision of H2SO4-amine clusters is found to be the dominating mechanism to initialize NPF in urban Beijing. The coagulation scavenging due to the high aerosol concentration is a governing factor as it limits the concentration of H2SO4-amine clusters and new particle formation rates. The formation of H2SO4-amine clusters in Beijing is sometimes limited by low amine concentrations. Summarizing the synergistic effects of H2SO4 concentration, amine concentrations, and aerosol concentration, we elucidate the governing factors for H2SO4-amine nucleation for various conditions.

Automated summary

Based on long-term atmospheric measurements in Beijing, it was found that the collision of H2SO4-amine clusters is the dominant mechanism for initiating NPF in urban environments, while high aerosol concentration limits the rate of new particle formation. Additionally, in Beijing, the formation of H2SO4-amine clusters is sometimes restricted by low amine concentrations.