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Atmos. Chem. Phys., 4, 563-569, 2004
www.atmos-chem-phys.net/4/563/2004/ doi:10.5194/acp-4-563-2004 © Author(s) 2004. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. |
Measuring atmospheric naphthalene with laser-induced fluorescence
1Department of Meteorology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA
2now at: Max-Planck-Institut für Chemie, Mainz, Germany
Abstract. A new method for measuring gas-phase naphthalene in the atmosphere is based on laser-induced fluorescence at low pressure. The fluorescence spectrum of naphthalene near 308 nm was identified. Naphthalene fluorescence quenching by N
, O and HO was investigated in the laboratory. No
significant quenching was found for HO with mixing ratio up to
2.5%. The quenching rate of naphthalene fluorescence is (1.98
0.18)
10
cm
molecule
s for N, and
(2.480.08)10
cmmolecules for
O at 297 K. Instrument calibrations were performed with a range of
naphthalene mixing ratios between 5 and 80 parts per billion by volume
(ppbv, 10
. In the current instrument configuration, the detection
limit is estimated to be about 20 parts per trillion by volume (pptv,
10
with 2
confidence and a 1-min integration time.
Measurements of atmospheric naphthalene in three cities, Nashville, TN,
Houston, TX, and New York City, NY, are presented. Good correlation between
naphthalene and major anthropogenic pollutants is found.Citation: Martinez, M., Harder, H., Ren, X., Lesher, R. L., and Brune, W. H.: Measuring atmospheric naphthalene with laser-induced fluorescence, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 4, 563-569, doi:10.5194/acp-4-563-2004, 2004.