Determination and characteristic analysis of atmospheric carbonyl compounds in a north china plain hub city

Abstract

The concentration and variation trend of atmospheric carbonyl compounds in Jinan were first measured during autumn 2017 for three continuous weeks at a 3-h time resolution. A total of 14 types of carbonyls were identified, among which acetone, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde were the most abundant carbonyls and their concentrations were 3.75±2.21 ppbv, 2.65±1.67 ppbv, 1.83±1.17 ppbv, respectively; formaldehyde and acetaldehyde showed similar diurnal variation trends. Butyraldehyde and isovaleraldehyde were another two important carbonyl compounds with concentrations of 1.05±0.59 ppbv and 1.04±0.47 ppbv, respectively. The average C1/C2 ratio was 1.90, which indicated that anthropogenic sources were the main contributor of atmospheric carbonyls. The correlation analysis showed that the measured carbonyls had different sources. Formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, butyraldehyde and isovaleraldehyde were the most important OVOC contributors to ·OH reactivity and O3 formation.