A smog chamber study coupling a photoionization aerosol electron/ion spectrometer to VUV synchrotron radiation: organic and inorganic-organic mixed aerosol analysis

Abstract : A reaction chamber was coupled to a photoionization aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer based on an electron/ion coincidence scheme and applied for on-line analysis of organic and inorganic-organic mixed aerosols using synchrotron tunable vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photons as the ionization source. In this proof of principle study, both aerosol and gas phase were detected simultaneously but could be differentiated. Present results and perspectives for improvement for this set-up are shown in the study of ozonolysis ([O3] = 0.13–3 ppm) of α-pinene (2–3 ppm), and the uptake of glyoxal upon ammonium sulphate. In this work the ozone concentration was monitored in real time, together with the particle size distributions and chemical composition, the latter taking advantage of the coincidence spectrometer and the tuneability of the synchrotron radiation as a soft VUV ionization source.