Measurements of the absorption and scattering coefficients of aerosol particles in suburb of Nanjing (China)

摘要

The absorption and scattering coefficients of atmospheric aerosols were continuously measured with a Photoacoustic Soot Spectrometer (PASS, DMT Inc. USA) at a suburb site of Nanjing, one of the regions experiencing rapid industrialization in China. The measurements were carried out during autumn and winter 2007. A preliminary analysis of the data shows that, the scattering coefficient, B_(scat), is two to ten times larger than the absorption coefficient, B_(abs), implying that the aerosols formed/emitted in this area are more scattering than previous assumed, and can be more important in cooling the Earth-atmosphere system. The results also indicate that the absolute values of both parameters are very much dependent on the meteorological conditions, such as wind speed and direction, fog, rain, etc. as well as the time of the day. Higher values often appear at nighttimes when wind is weak, especially when a temperature inverse layer is present near the surface. Higher values of B_(scat) and B_(abs) were also observed under hazy and foggy weather conditions or when wind is blown from east, where a large industrial zone is located. Simultaneous measurements of the number concentrations, chemical compositions, and size distributions of aerosol particles are used to explain the characteristics of the changes in B_(scat) and B_(abs).