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Net CO 2 surface emissions at Bern, Switzerland inferred from ambient observations of CO 2 , δ(O 2 /N 2 ), and 222 Rn using a customized radon tracer inversion
Author(s) -
Laan S.,
LaanLuijkx I. T.,
Zimmermann L.,
Conen F.,
Leuenberger M.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-8996
pISSN - 2169-897X
DOI - 10.1002/2013jd020307
Subject(s) - biosphere , combustion , atmospheric sciences , environmental science , greenhouse gas , fossil fuel , radon , atmosphere (unit) , tracer , natural gas , meteorology , environmental chemistry , chemistry , geology , geography , physics , nuclear physics , oceanography , organic chemistry , astronomy
The 222 Radon tracer method is a powerful tool to estimate local and regional surface emissions of, e.g., greenhouse gases. In this paper we demonstrate that in practice, the method as it is commonly used, produces inaccurate results in case of nonhomogeneously spread emission sources, and we propose a different approach to account for this. We have applied the new methodology to ambient observations of CO 2 and 222 Radon to estimate CO 2 surface emissions for the city of Bern, Switzerland. Furthermore, by utilizing combined measurements of CO 2 and δ(O 2 /N 2 ) we obtain valuable information about the spatial and temporal variability of the main emission sources. Mean net CO 2 emissions based on 2 years of observations are estimated at (11.2 ± 2.9) kt km −2 a −1 . Oxidative ratios indicate a significant influence from the regional biosphere in summer/spring and fossil fuel combustion processes in winter/autumn. Our data indicate that the emissions from fossil fuels are, to a large degree, related to the combustion of natural gas which is used for heating purposes.