Characterization of primary and secondary organic aerosols in Melbourne airshed: The influence of biogenic emissions, wood smoke and bushfires

Detailed chemical characterisation was performed for wintertime and summertime PM10 samples collected in Melbourne, Australia. The samples were analysed for marker compounds of biomass burning and biogenic secondary organic aerosol (SOA). The chemical analysis showed that the site was significantly influenced by the emissions from wintertime domestic wood combustion and summertime bushfires. Monosaccharide anhydrides were major primary biomass burning marker compounds found in the samples with the average concentrations of 439, 191, 57 and 3630 ngm−3 for winter 2004, winter 2005, summer 2005 and summer 2006, respectively. The highest concentration was determined during the summer 2006 bushfire season with the concentration of 15,400 ngm−3. Biomass burning originating SOA compounds detected in the samples include substituted nitrophenols, mainly 4-nitrocatechol (Mr 155), methyl-nitrocatechols (Mr 169) and dimethyl-nitrocatechols (Mr 183) with the sum concentrations as high as 115 ngm−3 for the wintertime samples and 770 ngm−3 for the bushfire influenced samples. In addition to this, elevated levels of biogenic SOA marker compounds were determined in the summertime samples influence by bushfire smoke. These marker compounds can be categorised into carboxylic acid marker compounds and heteroatomic organic acids containing nitrogen and sulfur. Carboxylic acid marker compounds can be largely attributed to oxidation products originating from 1,8-cineole, α-pinene and β-pinene that are main constituents of eucalyptus VOC emissions. Among those, diaterpenylic acid, terpenylic acid and daterebic acid were found at elevated levels in the bushfire influenced samples. Heteroatomic monoterpene SOA marker compounds (Mr 295, C10H17NO7S) were detected during both winter and summer periods. Especially high levels of these compounds were determined in the severe bushfire samples from summer 2006. Based on the results obtained from the chemical analysis and a macro tracer method, we estimated that 1,8-cineole SOA alone contributed up to 3.5% of secondary organic carbon mass during the bushfire period in 2006. It is likely that biogenic VOC oxidation can be an important source of biomass burning organic aerosol mass.