Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1238
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1238
12 Jun 2023
 | 12 Jun 2023

Impact of desert dust on new particle formation events and cloud condensation nuclei budget in dust-influenced areas

Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, Daniel Pérez-Ramírez, Hassan Lyamani, Fernando Rejano, Andrea Casans, Gloria Titos, Francisco José Olmo, Lubna Dada, Simo Hakala, Tareq Hussein, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Pauli Paasonen, Antti Hyvärinen, Noemí Pérez, Xavier Querol, Sergio Rodríguez, Nikos Kalivitis, Yenny González, Mansour A. Alghamdi, Veli-Matti Kerminen, Andrés Alastuey, Tuukka Petäjä, and Lucas Alados-Arboledas

Abstract. Detailed knowledge on the formation of new aerosol particles in the atmosphere from precursor gases, and their subsequent growth, commonly known as new particle formation (NPF) events, is one of the largest challenges in atmospheric aerosol science. High pre-existing particle loadings are expected to suppress the formation of new atmospheric aerosol particles due to high coagulation and condensation (CS) sinks. However, NPF events are regularly observed in conditions with high concentrations of pre-existing particles and even during intense desert dust intrusions that imply discrepancies between the observations and theory. In this study, we present a multi-site analysis of the occurrence of NPF events under the presence of desert dust particles in dust-influenced areas. Characterization of NPF events at 5 different locations highly influenced by desert dust outbreaks was made under dusty and non-dusty conditions by using continuous measurements of aerosol size distribution in both fine and coarse size fractions. Contrary to the common thought, our results show that the occurrence of NPF events is highly frequent during desert dust outbreaks, showing that NPF event frequencies during dusty conditions are similar to those observed during non-dusty conditions. Furthermore, our results show that NPF events also occur during intense desert dust outbreaks at all the studied sites, even at remote sites where the amount of precursor vapours is expected to be low. Our results show that the condensation sink associated with coarse particles (CSC) represents up to the 60 % of the total CS during dusty conditions, which highlights the importance of considering coarse fraction particles for NPF studies in desert dust influenced areas. However, we did not find a clear pattern of the effect of desert dust outbreaks on the strength of NPF events, with differences from site to site. The particle growth rate (GR) did not present a clear dependence on the CS during dusty and non-dusty conditions. This result, together with the fact that desert dust has different effects on the growth and formation rates at each site, suggest different formation and growth mechanisms at each site between dusty and non-dusty conditions, probably due to differences in precursor vapours origins and concentrations as well as changes in the oxidative capacity of pre-existing particles and their effectiveness acting as CS. Further investigation based on multiplatform measurement campaigns and chamber experiments with state-of-the-art gaseous and particulate physical and chemical properties measurements is needed to better understand the role of catalyst components present in desert dust particles in the process of NPF. Finally, our results suggest that the contribution of NPF events to cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) budget is larger during dusty conditions than during non-dusty conditions. Therefore, since desert dust contributes to a major fraction of the global aerosol mass load, and since there is a foreseeable increase of the frequency, duration, and intensity of desert dust episodes due to climate change, it is imperative to improve our understanding on the effect of desert dust outbreaks on NPF and CCN budget for better climate change prediction.

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Journal article(s) based on this preprint

22 Dec 2023
Impact of desert dust on new particle formation events and the cloud condensation nuclei budget in dust-influenced areas
Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, Daniel Pérez-Ramírez, Hassan Lyamani, Fernando Rejano, Andrea Casans, Gloria Titos, Francisco José Olmo, Lubna Dada, Simo Hakala, Tareq Hussein, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Pauli Paasonen, Antti Hyvärinen, Noemí Pérez, Xavier Querol, Sergio Rodríguez, Nikos Kalivitis, Yenny González, Mansour A. Alghamdi, Veli-Matti Kerminen, Andrés Alastuey, Tuukka Petäjä, and Lucas Alados-Arboledas
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 15795–15814, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15795-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15795-2023, 2023
Short summary
Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, Daniel Pérez-Ramírez, Hassan Lyamani, Fernando Rejano, Andrea Casans, Gloria Titos, Francisco José Olmo, Lubna Dada, Simo Hakala, Tareq Hussein, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Pauli Paasonen, Antti Hyvärinen, Noemí Pérez, Xavier Querol, Sergio Rodríguez, Nikos Kalivitis, Yenny González, Mansour A. Alghamdi, Veli-Matti Kerminen, Andrés Alastuey, Tuukka Petäjä, and Lucas Alados-Arboledas

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-1238', Anonymous Referee #1, 06 Jul 2023
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, 29 Sep 2023
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-1238', Anonymous Referee #2, 24 Jul 2023
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC2', Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, 29 Sep 2023

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-1238', Anonymous Referee #1, 06 Jul 2023
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, 29 Sep 2023
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-1238', Anonymous Referee #2, 24 Jul 2023
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC2', Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, 29 Sep 2023

Peer review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision | EF: Editorial file upload
AR by Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera on behalf of the Authors (29 Sep 2023)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (01 Oct 2023) by Luis A. Ladino
RR by Anonymous Referee #3 (01 Nov 2023)
ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (12 Nov 2023) by Luis A. Ladino
AR by Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera on behalf of the Authors (16 Nov 2023)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Publish as is (16 Nov 2023) by Luis A. Ladino
AR by Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera on behalf of the Authors (17 Nov 2023)  Manuscript 

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

22 Dec 2023
Impact of desert dust on new particle formation events and the cloud condensation nuclei budget in dust-influenced areas
Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, Daniel Pérez-Ramírez, Hassan Lyamani, Fernando Rejano, Andrea Casans, Gloria Titos, Francisco José Olmo, Lubna Dada, Simo Hakala, Tareq Hussein, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Pauli Paasonen, Antti Hyvärinen, Noemí Pérez, Xavier Querol, Sergio Rodríguez, Nikos Kalivitis, Yenny González, Mansour A. Alghamdi, Veli-Matti Kerminen, Andrés Alastuey, Tuukka Petäjä, and Lucas Alados-Arboledas
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 15795–15814, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15795-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15795-2023, 2023
Short summary
Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, Daniel Pérez-Ramírez, Hassan Lyamani, Fernando Rejano, Andrea Casans, Gloria Titos, Francisco José Olmo, Lubna Dada, Simo Hakala, Tareq Hussein, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Pauli Paasonen, Antti Hyvärinen, Noemí Pérez, Xavier Querol, Sergio Rodríguez, Nikos Kalivitis, Yenny González, Mansour A. Alghamdi, Veli-Matti Kerminen, Andrés Alastuey, Tuukka Petäjä, and Lucas Alados-Arboledas
Juan Andrés Casquero-Vera, Daniel Pérez-Ramírez, Hassan Lyamani, Fernando Rejano, Andrea Casans, Gloria Titos, Francisco José Olmo, Lubna Dada, Simo Hakala, Tareq Hussein, Katrianne Lehtipalo, Pauli Paasonen, Antti Hyvärinen, Noemí Pérez, Xavier Querol, Sergio Rodríguez, Nikos Kalivitis, Yenny González, Mansour A. Alghamdi, Veli-Matti Kerminen, Andrés Alastuey, Tuukka Petäjä, and Lucas Alados-Arboledas

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Short summary
Here we present the first study of the effect of mineral dust on the inhibition/promotion of new particle formation (NPF) events in different dust-influenced areas. Unexpectedly, we show that the occurrence of NPF events is highly frequent during mineral dust outbreaks, occurring even during extreme dust outbreaks. We also show that the occurrence of NPF events during mineral dust outbreaks significantly affects the potential cloud condensation nuclei budget.