Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics www.atmos-chem-phys.net 1680-7316 1680-7324 10 1 2010 10.5194/acp-10-219-2010 http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/10/219/2010/ http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/10/219/2010/acp-10-219-2010.html http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/10/219/2010/acp-10-219-2010.pdf 219 237 2010-01-13 Black carbon over Mexico: the effect of atmospheric transport on mixing state, mass absorption cross-section, and BC/CO ratios R. Subramanian randomsubu@gmail.com G. L. Kok D. Baumgardner A. Clarke Y. Shinozuka T. L. Campos C. G. Heizer B. B. Stephens B. de Foy P. B. Voss R. A. Zaveri Droplet Measurement Technologies, Boulder, CO 80301, USA Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO 80305, USA St. Louis University, St. Louis, MO 63108, USA Smith College, Northampton, MA 01063, USA Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA 99352, USA A single particle soot photometer (SP2) was operated on the NCAR C-130 during the MIRAGE campaign (part of MILAGRO), sampling black carbon (BC) over Mexico. The highest BC concentrations were measured over Mexico City (sometimes as much as 2 μg/m³) and over hill-fires to the south of the city. The age of plumes outside of Mexico City was determined using a combination of HYSPLIT trajectories, WRF-FLEXPART modeling and CMET balloon tracks. As expected, older, diluted air masses had lower BC concentrations. A comparison of carbon monoxide (CO) and BC suggests a CO background of around 65 ppbv, and a background-corrected BC/CO_net ratio of 2.89±0.89 (ng/m³-STP)/ppbv (average ± standard deviation). This ratio is similar for fresh emissions over Mexico City, as well as for aged airmasses. Comparison of light absorption measured with a particle soot absorption photometer (PSAP) and the SP2 BC suggests a BC mass-normalized absorption cross-section (MAC) of 10.9±2.1 m²/g at 660 nm (or 13.1 m²/g @ 550 nm, assuming MAC is inversely dependent on wavelength). This appears independent of aging and similar to the expected absorption cross-section for aged BC, but values, particularly in fresh emissions, could be biased high due to instrument artifacts. SP2-derived BC coating indicators show a prominent thinly-coated BC mode over the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA), while older air masses show both thinly-coated and thickly-coated BC. 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