The indirect climate effect represents the largest unknown factor that contributes to climate change.  Specifically, the ability of an aerosol particle to take up water and nucleate a cloud droplet is not well understood.  However, water pre-adsorption on insoluble atmospheric aerosol particles is known to significantly affect the particle’s ability to become an active cloud condensation nucleus (CCN), and potentially depends on particle morphology as well as size.  In order to study the effect of particle morphology on water adsorption to insoluble surfaces, the water content on a model atmospheric insoluble aerosol, 500 nm Polybead® polyhydroxylate microspheres (PHS) was measured as a function of relative humidity (RH).  Water adsorption was measured using horizontal attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (HATR-FTIR) spectroscopy equipped with a flow cell and the results are compared to gravimetric analysis of water adsorption on the same PHS sample using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM).

Water adsorption on polyhydroxylate microspheres as a function of relative humidity using an FTIR spectrometer equipped with a flow cell

2019 Spring National Meeting

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.