Wet removal of black carbon in Asian outflow: Aerosol Radiative Forcing in East Asia (A-FORCE) aircraft campaign

Abstract

The Aerosol Radiative Forcing in East Asia (A-FORCE) aircraft campaign was conducted over East Asia in March-April 2009. During the A-FORCE campaign, 120 vertical profiles of black carbon (BC) and carbon monoxide (CO) were obtained in the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and the free troposphere. This study examines the wet removal of BC in Asian outflow using the A-FORCE data. The concentrations of BC and CO were greatly enhanced in air parcels sampled at 3-6 km in altitude over the Yellow Sea on 30 March 2009, associated with upward transport due to a cyclone with modest amounts of precipitation over northern China. In contrast, high CO concentrations without substantial enhancements of BC concentrations were observed in air parcels sampled at 5-6 km over the East China Sea on 23 April 2009, caused by uplifting due to cumulus convection with large amounts of precipitation over central China. The transport efficiency of BC (TE BC, namely the fraction of BC particles not removed during transport) in air parcels sampled above 2 km during the entire A-FORCE period decreased primarily with the increase in the precipitation amount that air parcels experienced during vertical transport, although their correlation was modest (r 2 = 0.43). TE BC also depended on the altitude to which air parcels were transported from the PBL and the latitude where they were uplifted locally over source regions. The median values of TE BC for air parcels originating from northern China (north of 33N) and sampled at 2-4 km and 4-9 km levels were 86% and 49%, respectively, during the A-FORCE period. These median values were systematically greater than the corresponding median values (69% and 32%, respectively) for air parcels originating from southern China (south of 33N). Use of the A-FORCE data set will contribute to the reduction of large uncertainties in wet removal process of BC in global- and regional-scale models. Copyright 2012 by the American Geophysical Union.