A parameterized transmittance model （PTR） for ozone and water vapor monochromatic transmittance calculation in the solar-to-near-infrared spectrum 0.3-4 pm with a spectral resolution of 5 cm-1 was developed based on the transmittance data calculated by Moderate-resolution Transmittance model （MOD- TRAN）. Polynomial equations were derived to represent the transmittance as functions of path length and airmass for every wavelength based on the least-squares method. Comparisons between the transmittances calculated using PTR and MODTRAN were made, using the results of MODTRAN as a reference. Rela- tive root-mean-square error （RMSre） was 0.823% for ozone transmittance. RMSre values were 8.84~ and 3.48~ for water vapor transmittance ranges of 1-1 x 10-is and 1-1x 10-3, respectively. In addition, the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II （SAGEII） ozone profiles and University of Wyoming （UWYO） water vapor profiles were applied to validate the applicability of PTR model. RMSre was 0.437~ for ozone transmittance. RMSre values were 8.89~ and 2.43% for water vapor transmittance ranges of 1-1~10-is and 1-1~ 10-6, respectively. Furthermore, the optical depth profiles calculated using the PTR model were compared to the results of MODTRAN. Absolute RMS errors （RMSab） for ozone optical depths were within 0.0055 and 0.0523 for water vapor at all of the tested altitudes. Finally, the comparison between the solar heating rate calculated from the transmittance of PTR and Line-by-Line radiative transfer model （LBLRTM） was performed, showing a maximum deviation of 0.238 K d-1 （6% of the corresponding solar heating rate calculated using LBLRTM）. In the troposphere all of the deviations were within 0.08 K d-1. The computational speed of PTR model is nearly two orders of magnitude faster than that of MODTRAN.
Knowledge of haze particles in background areas of North China is limited, although they have been studied well in urban settings. Atmospheric aerosol particles were collected at a background site in the North China Plain during 16–31 January, 2011. Water soluble inorganic ions of PM2.5 and physicochemical characteristics of individual particles on hazy and clean days were measured by Ion Chromatography(IC) and Transmission Electron Microscopy(TEM), respectively. Average PM2.5 mass concentration was 50.4±29.9 μg m?3 with 62.5±26.8 μg m?3 on hazy days and 19.9±11.5 μg m?3 on clean days. SO42?, NO3?, and NH4+ with a combined mass concentration of 19.0±11.5 μg m?3 accounted for 69.8%–89.4% of the total water soluble inorganic ions. Size distributions of SO42? and NH4+ showed one unimodal peak at 0.56–1.8 μm on hazy days, whereas NO3? appeared as bimodal peaks at 0.56–1.8 and 5.6–10 μm, respectively. Individual particle analyses showed that the dominant aerosols were a mixture of sulfate, nitrate, and carbonaceous species, which together determine their mixing states. 48-h air mass back trajectories on hazy days suggested that air masses crossed the polluted continental areas(such as Jing-jin-ji region and Shandong province) and entrained ground air pollutants 11–19 hours before reaching the background area. During long-range transport particles undergo ageing and tend to be internally mixed mainly due to condensation in the background atmosphere. Our results suggest that hygroscopic and optical properties of these aerosol particles in the background area differ substantially from those in urban areas.
LU YaLingCHI JianWeiYAO LanYANG LingXiaoLI WeiJunWANG ZiFaWANG WenXing
Simulated regional precipitation, especially extreme precipitation events, and the regional hydrologic budgets over the western North Pacific region during the period from May to June 2008 were investigated with the high-resolution （4-km grid spacing） Weather Research and Forecast （WRF v3.2.1） model with explicit cloud microphysics. The model initial and boundary conditions were derived from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction/Department of Energy （NCEP/DOE） Reanalysis 2 data. The model precipitation results were evaluated against the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission （TRMM） Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis 3B42 product. The results show that the WRF simulations can reason- ably reproduce the spatial distributions of daily mean precipitation and rainy days. However, the simulated frequency distributions of rainy days showed an overestimation of light precipitation, an underestimation of moderate to heavy precipitation, but a good representation of extreme precipitation. The downscaling approach was able to add value to the very heavy precipitation over the ocean since the convective processes are resolved by the high-resolution cloud-resolving model. Moreover, the water vapor budget analysis indi- cates that heavy precipitation is contributed mostly by the stronger moisture convergence; whereas, in less convective periods, the precipitation is more influenced by the surface evaporation. The simulated water vapor budgets imply the importance in the tropical monsoon region of cloud microphysics that affects the precipitation, atmospheric latent heating and, subsequently, the large-scale circulation.
A field experiment was conducted in Tianjin, China from September 9-30, 2010, focused on the evolution of Planetary Boundary Layer （PBL） and its impact on surface air pollutants. The experiment used three remote sensing instruments, wind profile radar （WPR）, microwave radiometer （MWR） and micro-pulse lidar （MPL）, to detect the vertical profiles of winds, temperature, and aerosol backscattering coefficient and to measure the vertical profiles of surface pollutants （aerosol, CO, SO2, NOx）, and also collected sonic anemometers data from a 255-m meteorological tower. Based on these measurements, the evolution of the PBL was estimated. The averaged PBL height was about 1000-1300 m during noon/afternoon-time, and 200-300 m during night-time. The PBL height and the aerosol concentrations were anti-correlated during clear and haze conditions. The averaged maximum PBL heights were 1.08 and 1.70 km while the averaged aerosol concentrations were 52 and 17 μg/m＆3 under haze and clear sky conditions, respectively, The influence of aerosols and clouds on solar radiation was observed based on sonic anemometers data collected from the 255-m meteorological tower. The heat flux was found significantly decreased by haze （heavy pollution） or cloud, which tended to depress the development of PBL, while the repressed structure of PBL further weakened the diffusion of pollutants, leading to heavy pollution. This possible positive feedback cycle （more aerosols→lower PBL height → more aerosols） would induce an acceleration process for heavy ground pollution in megacities.
As an important anthropogenic volatile organic compound(VOC), m-xylene has attracted numerous attentions due to its potential in secondary organic aerosol(SOA) formation. In this study, effects of aluminium dust seeds(boehmite and alumina) on SOA yield and aerosol size in m-xylene/NOx photo-oxidation were investigated in a 2 m3 smog chamber at 30°C and 50% relative humidity. Compared to the seed-free system, the presence of aluminium seeds resulted in an increase in the SOA yield, and also enhanced the O3 concentration in the chamber. The photolysis of O3 is a major source of OH radical, which is the most important oxidant of m-xylene. The increase in O3 concentration could result in the generation of more OH radicals, and finally contribute to the SOA formation. Seed particles influence the SOA size mainly by acting as condensation nuclei. Semi-volatile organic compounds(SVOCs) were condensed onto these nuclei, resulting in the increase in SOA size. However, when aluminium seeds with high concentrations were introduced into the system, SVOCs that had been condensed onto each particle were dispersed by these seeds, leading to the reduction in aerosol size.
LIU ChangMA QingXinCHU BiWuLIU YongChunHE HongZHANG XiaoYeLI JunHuaHAO JiMing
