Particles condensation mode

Hering and Friedlander (1982) made similar observations for particle sulfate and attributed the smallest mode (referred to as the condensation mode) to formation from gas-phase S02 oxidation and the larger modes (the droplet mode) to oxidation in the condensed phase. Meng and Seinfeld (1994) have shown that the droplet mode particles cannot arise from growth of the smaller, condensation mode particles and propose that the condensation mode particles are activated to form fog or cloud droplets, followed by chemical reactions and subsequent evaporation to form the droplet particles. 

Features - particles of growing polymer form in fluidized bed - catalyst residence time 2-4 hours - morphology and psd of catalyst are important - previously (pre-1990s) restricted in range of comonomer that could be used because of emergence of "condensed" mode operation, a wide range of comonomers may now be used... 

The accumulation mode results largely from gas-to-particle conversion by chemical reaction, the condensation of water and other vapors, and the attachment of particles from the uitrafine range by coagulation. A smaller part of the accumulation mode is directly emitted as primary particles. This mode is. stable with respect to deposition, interacts little with the coarse mode, and has a relatively long atmospheric residence time. It ts for these reasons that it is called the accumulation mode. 

Processing of accumulation and coarse mode aerosols by clouds (Chapter 17) can also modify the concentration and composition of these modes. Aqueous-phase chemical reactions take place in cloud and fog droplets, and in aerosol particles at relative humidities approaching 100%. These reactions can lead to production of sulfate (Chapter 7) and after evaporation of water, a larger aerosol particle is left in the atmosphere. This transformation can lead to the formation of the condensation mode and the droplet mode (Hering and Friedlander 1982 John et al. 1990 Meng and Seinfeld 1994). 

Measurements of the urban aerosol mass distribution have shown that two distinct modes often exist in the 0.1 to 1.0 pm diameter range (Hering and Friedlander 1982 McMurry and Wilson 1983 Wall et al. 1988 John et al. 1990). These are referred to as the condensation mode (approximate aerodynamic diameter 0.2 pm) and the droplet mode (aerodynamic diameter around 0.7 pm). These two submicrometer mass distribution modes have also been observed in nonurban continental locations (McMurry and Wilson 1983 Hobbs et al. 1985 Radke et al. 1989). Hering and Friedlander (1982) and John et al. (1990) proposed that the larger mode could be the result of aqueous-phase chemical reactions. Meng and Seinfeld (1994) showed that growth of condensation mode particles by accretion of water vapor or by gas-phase or aerosol-phase sulfate production cannot explain existence of the droplet mode. Activation of condensation mode particles, formation of cloud/fog drops, followed by aqueous-phase chemistry, and droplet evaporation were shown to be a plausible mechanism for formation of the aerosol droplet mode. 

Under conditions of high humidity, such as in a cloud or fog, the accumulation mode may itself have two submodes a condensation mode with MMAD of 0.2— 0.3 pm and a droplet mode with MMAD of 0.5-0.8 pm. The droplets are formed by the growth of hygroscopic condensation-mode particles. This process may be facilitated by chemical reactions in the droplet. 

Amorphous sihca exists also ia a variety of forms that are composed of small particles, possibly aggregated. Commonly encountered products iaclude sihca sols, sihca gels, precipitated sihca, and pyrogenic sihca (9,73). These products differ ia their modes of manufacture and the way ia which the primary particles aggregate (Fig. 8). Amorphous sihcas are characterhed by small ultimate particle si2e and high specific surface area. Their surfaces may be substantially anhydrous or may contain silanol, —SiOH, groups. These sihcas are frequentiy viewed as condensation polymers of sihcic acid, Si(OH)4. 

Fig. 6. Size distribution of an urban aerosol showing the three modes containing much of the aerosol mass. The fine mode contains particles produced by condensation of low volatility gases. The mid-range, or accumulation mode, results from coagulation of smaller aerosols and condensation of gases on preexisting particles. Coarse particulates, the largest aerosols, are usually generated mechanically.

The brief review of the newest results in the theory of elementary chemical processes in the condensed phase given in this chapter shows that great progress has been achieved in this field during recent years, concerning the description of both the interaction of electrons with the polar medium and with the intramolecular vibrations and the interaction of the intramolecular vibrations and other reactive modes with each other and with the dissipative subsystem (thermal bath). The rapid development of the theory of the adiabatic reactions of the transfer of heavy particles with due account of the fluctuational character of the motion of the medium in the framework of both dynamic and stochastic approaches should be mentioned. The stochastic approach is described only briefly in this chapter. The number of papers in this field is so great that their detailed review would require a separate article. 

As previously mentioned, past studies used non-filtered air with unknown concentrations of trace gases at unknown relative humidities. Also, many of the studies used plastic aging chambers that may have introduced volatile monomers into the air. These unknown factors are important to determine in order to fully understand the nature of the ultrafine particle mode. According to the classical thermodynamic theory of ion cluster formation (Coghlan and Scott, 1983), the relative humidity and trace gases will affect the existence of condensation nuclei. Megaw and Wiffen (1961) observed an increase in nuclei formation with the presence of sulfur dioxide. 

Though the detailed mechanism of the action of SrC03 on AP propellants has yet to be fully understood, the results of the thermograms indicate that the site and mode of the action of SrCOj are in the condensed phase rather than in the gas phase. The decomposition process of AP particles is substantially altered by the addition of SrCO,. 

---