A study of organic nitrates formation in an urban plume using a Master Chemical Mechanism

Secondary organic chemistry inside a typical urban plume in the North-East of the United States has been studied using a highly detailed chemical model, based upon the Master Chemical Mechanism (MCM). The model results have been qualitatively compared to measurements taken during three flights of the NOAA WP-3D aircraft, which sampled a plume from the New York City area during the NEAQS 2004 campaign. The model has been used to study the formation processes and photochemical evolution of alkyl nitrates.While long-chain (C5) alkyl nitrates are produced for 90% or more from the oxidation of a single parent alkane, short-chain (