Global models of atmospheric chemistry have been based on laboratory measurements of rate coefficients for over thirty years. The same has not been possible for aerosol formation because of the challenges involved in reliably measuring the nucleation process under laboratory conditions. Nucleation is key process in the atmosphere because around half of climate-relevant aerosol particles are formed this way. Here I will show how we can now, for the first time, build a realistic global model of aerosol formation involving sulphuric acid, ammonia and oxidised biogenic organic compounds from chamber measurements at CERN. A vital development has been the ability, using mass spectrometry, to measure the chemical composition of growing molecular clusters. This has allowed us to unambiguously determine which molecules participate in nucleation, to exclude potential contaminants that have affected earlier measurements, and to build reliable mechanisms and parameterisations that can be applied in global models.  <br/>

From aerosol mass spectrometry to global models of aerosol formation

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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