Elevated Particle Acidity Enhanced the Sulfate Formation During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Zhengzhou, China

Overview

Journal Environ Pollut

Specialty Environmental Health

Date 2021 Dec 21

PMID 34933059

Citations 3

Authors

Jieru Yang

Shenbo Wang

Ruiqin Zhang

Shasha Yin

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The significant reduction in PM mass concentration after the outbreak of COVID-19 provided a unique opportunity further to study the formation mechanism of secondary inorganic aerosols. Hourly data of chemical components in PM, gaseous pollutants, and meteorological data were obtained from January 1 to 23, 2020 (pre-lockdown) and January 24 to February 17, 2020 (COVID-lockdown) in Zhengzhou, China. Sulfate, nitrate, and ammonium were the main components of PM during both the pre-lockdown and COVID-lockdown periods. Compared with the pre-lockdown period, even though the concentration and proportion of nitrate decreased, nitrate was the dominant component in PM during the COVID-lockdown period. Moreover, nitrate production was enhanced by the elevated O concentration, which was favorable for the homogeneous and hydrolysis nitrate formation despite the drastic decrease of NO. The proportion of sulfate during the COVID-lockdown period was higher than that before. Aqueous-phase reactions of HO and transition metal (TMI) catalyzed oxidations were the major pathways for sulfate formation. During the COVID-lockdown period, TMI-catalyzed oxidation became the dominant pathway for aqueous-phase sulfate formation because the elevated acidity favored the dissolution of TMI. Therefore, the enhanced TMI-catalyzed oxidation affected by the elevated particle acidity dominated the sulfate formation, resulting in the slight increase of sulfate concentration during the COVID-lockdown period in Zhengzhou.

Citing Articles

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