Open AccessEmissions of trace gases and particles from savanna fires in southern Africa
Author(s) -
Sinha Parikhit,
Hobbs Peter V.,
Yokelson Robert J.,
Bertschi Isaac T.,
Blake Donald R.,
Simpson Isobel J.,
Gao Song,
Kirchstetter Thomas W.,
Novakov Tica
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.67
H-Index - 298
eISSN - 2156-2202
pISSN - 0148-0227
DOI - 10.1029/2002jd002325
Subject(s) - environmental chemistry , trace gas , carbonyl sulfide , particulates , carbon monoxide , methane , aerosol , dimethyl sulfide , hydrogen sulfide , carbon dioxide , ammonia , environmental science , sulfur , sulfur dioxide , nitrogen , formaldehyde , compounds of carbon , chemistry , inorganic chemistry , organic chemistry , chemical reaction , catalysis
Airborne measurements made on initial smoke from 10 savanna fires in southern Africa provide quantitative data on emissions of 50 gaseous and particulate species, including carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, methane, ammonia, dimethyl sulfide, nonmethane organic compounds, halocarbons, gaseous organic acids, aerosol ionic components, carbonaceous aerosols, and condensation nuclei (CN). Measurements of several of the gaseous species by gas chromatography and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy are compared. Emission ratios and emission factors are given for eight species that have not been reported previously for biomass burning of savanna in southern Africa (namely, dimethyl sulfide, methyl nitrate, five hydrocarbons, and particles with diameters from 0.1 to 3 μm). The emission factor that we measured for ammonia is lower by a factor of 4, and the emission factors for formaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide, and CN are greater by factors of about 3, 20, and 3–15, respectively, than previously reported values. The new emission factors are used to estimate annual emissions of these species from savanna fires in Africa and worldwide.