Several types of atmospheric aerosol have a significant effect on Earth's climate: volcanic, desert dust, sea-salt, that originating from biogenic sources and human-made. Volcanic aerosol forms in the stratosphere after an eruption as droplets ofsulfuric acid that can prevail for up to two years, and reflect sunlight, lowering temperature. Desert dust, mineral particles blown to high altitudes, absorb heat and may be responsible for inhibiting storm cloud formation. Human-madesulfate aerosols, primarily from burning oil and coal, affect the behavior of clouds.[4] When aerosols absorb pollutants, it facilitates the deposition of pollutants to the surface of the earth as well as to bodies of water.[5] This has the potential to be damaging to both the environment and human health.
Ship tracks areclouds that form around theexhaust released by ships into the still ocean air. Watermolecules collect around the tiny particles (aerosols) from exhaust to form acloud seed. More and more water accumulates on the seed until a visible cloud is formed. In the case of ship tracks, the cloud seeds are stretched over a long narrow path where the wind has blown the ship's exhaust, so the resulting clouds resemble long strings over the ocean.
The warming caused by human-produced greenhouse gases has been somewhat offset by the cooling effect of human-produced aerosols. In 2020, regulations on fuel significantly cut sulfur dioxide emissions from international shipping by approximately 80%, leading to an unexpected global geoengineering termination shock.[6]
The liquid or solid particles in an aerosol have diameters typically less than1 μm. Larger particles with a significant settling speed make the mixture asuspension, but the distinction is not clear. In everyday language,aerosol often refers to adispensing system that delivers a consumer product from aspray can.
Photomicrograph made with a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM):Fly ash particles at 2,000× magnification. Most of the particles in this aerosol are nearly spherical.Aerosol spray can
Aerosol is defined as a suspension system of solid or liquid particles in a gas. An aerosol includes both the particles and the suspending gas, which is usually air.[1] Meteorologists and climatologists often refer to them as particle matter, while the classification in sizes ranges like PM2.5 or PM10,[9][10] is useful in the field of atmospheric pollution as these size range play a role in ascertain the harmful effects in human health.[11]Frederick G. Donnan presumably first used the termaerosol duringWorld War I to describe an aero-solution, clouds of microscopic particles in air. This term developed analogously to the termhydrosol, acolloid system with water as the dispersed medium.[12]Primary aerosols contain particles introduced directly into the gas;secondary aerosols form through gas-to-particle conversion.[13]
Key aerosol groups include sulfates, organic carbon, black carbon, nitrates, mineral dust, and sea salt, they usually clump together to form a complex mixture.[10] Various types of aerosol, classified according to physical form and how they were generated, include dust, fume, mist, smoke and fog.[14]
There are several measures of aerosol concentration.Environmental science andenvironmental health often use themass concentration (M), defined as the mass of particulate matter per unit volume, in units such as μg/m3. Also commonly used is thenumber concentration (N), the number of particles per unit volume, in units such as number per m3 or number per cm3.[15]
Particle size has a major influence on particle properties, and the aerosol particle radius or diameter (dp) is a key property used to characterise aerosols.
Aerosols vary in theirdispersity. Amonodisperse aerosol, producible in the laboratory, contains particles of uniform size. Most aerosols, however, aspolydisperse colloidal systems, exhibit a range of particle sizes.[13] Liquid droplets are almost always nearly spherical, but scientists use anequivalent diameter to characterize the properties of various shapes of solid particles, some very irregular. The equivalent diameter is the diameter of a spherical particle with the same value of some physical property as the irregular particle.[16] Theequivalent volume diameter (de) is defined as the diameter of a sphere of the same volume as that of the irregular particle.[17] Also commonly used is theaerodynamic diameter, da.
Aerosol pollution over northernIndia andBangladeshOverview of large clouds of aerosols around Earth (green: smoke, blue: salt, yellow: dust, white: sulfuric)
Several types of atmospheric aerosol have a significant effect on Earth's climate: volcanic, desert dust, sea-salt, that originating from biogenic sources and human-made. Volcanic aerosol forms in the stratosphere after an eruption as droplets ofsulfuric acid that can prevail for up to two years, and reflect sunlight, lowering temperature. Desert dust, mineral particles blown to high altitudes, absorb heat and may be responsible for inhibiting storm cloud formation. Human-madesulfate aerosols, primarily from burning oil and coal, affect the behavior of clouds.[4]
Although allhydrometeors, solid and liquid, can be described as aerosols, a distinction is commonly made between such dispersions (i.e. clouds) containing activated drops and crystals, and aerosol particles.[22] Theatmosphere of Earth contains aerosols of various types and concentrations, including quantities of:
naturalinorganic materials: fine dust, sea salt, or water droplets
Aerosols have a cooling effect that is small compared to the radiative forcing (warming effect) of greenhouse gases.[23] Hansenetal. (2025) wrote that the IPCC had underestimated aerosols' cooling effect, causing it to also underestimateclimate sensitivity (Earth's responsiveness to increases in greenhouse gas concentrations).[24] In what Hansen called aFaustian bargain, regulation of aerosols improved air quality, but aerosols' cooling effect became inadequate to temper the increasing warming effect of greenhouse gases—explaining unexpectedly large global warming in 2023–2024.[24]
When aerosols absorb pollutants, it facilitates the deposition of pollutants to the surface of the earth as well as to bodies of water.[5] This has the potential to be damaging to both the environment and human health.
Aerosols interact with theEarth's energy budget in two ways, directly and indirectly.
E.g., adirect effect is that aerosols scatter and absorb incoming solar radiation.[26] This will mainly lead to a cooling of the surface (solar radiation is scattered back to space) but may also contribute to a warming of the surface (caused by the absorption of incoming solar energy).[27] This will be an additional element to thegreenhouse effect and therefore contributing to the global climate change.[5]
Theindirect effects refer to the aerosol interfering with formations that interact directly with radiation. For example, they are able to modify the size of the cloud particles in the lower atmosphere, thereby changing the way clouds reflect and absorb light and therefore modifying the Earth's energy budget.[25]
There is evidence to suggest that anthropogenic aerosols actually offset the effects of greenhouse gases in some areas, which is why the Northern Hemisphere shows slower surface warming than the Southern Hemisphere, although that just means that the Northern Hemisphere will absorb the heat later through ocean currents bringing warmer waters from the South.[28] On a global scale however, aerosol cooling decreases greenhouse-gases-induced heating without offsetting it completely.[29]
Ship tracks areclouds that form around theexhaust released by ships into the still ocean air. Watermolecules collect around the tiny particles (aerosols) from exhaust to form acloud seed. More and more water accumulates on the seed until a visible cloud is formed. In the case of ship tracks, the cloud seeds are stretched over a long narrow path where the wind has blown the ship's exhaust, so the resulting clouds resemble long strings over the ocean.[30]
The warming caused by human-produced greenhouse gases has been somewhat offset by the cooling effect of human-produced aerosols. In 2020, regulations on fuel significantly cutsulfur dioxide emissions from international shipping by approximately 80%, leading to an unexpected global geoengineering termination shock.[6]
Aerosols in the 20 μm range show a particularly long persistence time in air conditioned rooms due to their "jet rider" behaviour (move with air jets, gravitationally fall out in slowly moving air);[31] as this aerosol size is most effectively adsorbed in the human nose,[32] the primordial infection site inCOVID-19, such aerosols may contribute to the pandemic.[33]
Aerosol particles with an effective diameter smaller than 10 μm can enter the bronchi, while the ones with an effective diameter smaller than 2.5 μm can enter as far as the gas exchange region in the lungs,[34] which can be hazardous to human health.
The same hypothetical log-normal (bi-modal) aerosol distribution plotted, from top to bottom, as a number vs. diameter distribution, a surface area vs. diameter distribution, and a volume vs. diameter distribution. Typical mode names are shown at the top. Each distribution is normalized so that the total area is 1000.
For a monodisperse aerosol, a single number—the particle diameter—suffices to describe the size of the particles. However, more complicatedparticle-size distributions describe the sizes of the particles in a polydisperse aerosol. This distribution defines the relative amounts of particles, sorted according to size.[35] One approach to defining the particle size distribution uses a list of the sizes of every particle in a sample. However, this approach proves tedious to ascertain in aerosols with millions of particles and awkward to use. Another approach splits the size range into intervals and finds the number (or proportion) of particles in each interval. These data can be presented in ahistogram with the area of each bar representing the proportion of particles in that size bin, usually normalised by dividing the number of particles in a bin by the width of the interval so that the area of each bar is proportionate to the number of particles in the size range that it represents.[36] If the width of the binstends to zero, the frequency function is:[37]
where
is the diameter of the particles
is the fraction of particles having diameters between and +
is the frequency function
Therefore, the area under the frequency curve between two sizes a andb represents the total fraction of the particles in that size range:[37]
It can also be formulated in terms of the total number densityN:[38]
Assuming spherical aerosol particles, the aerosol surface area per unit volume (S) is given by the secondmoment:[38]
And the third moment gives the total volume concentration (V) of the particles:[38]
The particle size distribution can be approximated. Thenormal distribution usually does not suitably describe particle size distributions in aerosols because of theskewness associated with along tail of larger particles. Also for a quantity that varies over a large range, as many aerosol sizes do, the width of the distribution implies negative particles sizes, which is not physically realistic. However, the normal distribution can be suitable for some aerosols, such as test aerosols, certainpollen grains andspores.[39]
The log-normal distribution has no negative values, can cover a wide range of values, and fits many observed size distributions reasonably well.[40][41]
Other distributions sometimes used to characterise particle size include: theRosin-Rammler distribution, applied to coarsely dispersed dusts and sprays; the Nukiyama–Tanasawa distribution, for sprays of extremely broad size ranges; thepower function distribution, occasionally applied to atmospheric aerosols; theexponential distribution, applied to powdered materials; and for cloud droplets, the Khrgian–Mazin distribution.[42]
For low values of theReynolds number (<1), true for most aerosol motion,Stokes' law describes the force of resistance on a solid spherical particle in a fluid. However, Stokes' law is only valid when the velocity of the gas at the surface of the particle is zero. For small particles (< 1 μm) that characterize aerosols, however, this assumption fails. To account for this failure, one can introduce theCunningham correction factor, always greater than 1. Including this factor, one finds the relation between the resisting force on a particle and its velocity:[43]
This allows us to calculate theterminal velocity of a particle undergoing gravitational settling in still air. Neglectingbuoyancy effects, we find:[44]
where
is the terminal settling velocity of the particle.
The terminal velocity can also be derived for other kinds of forces. If Stokes' law holds, then the resistance to motion is directly proportional to speed. The constant of proportionality is the mechanical mobility (B) of a particle:[45]
A particle traveling at any reasonable initial velocity approaches its terminal velocityexponentially with ane-folding time equal to the relaxation time:[46]
where:
is the particle speed at time t
is the final particle speed
is the initial particle speed
To account for the effect of the shape of non-spherical particles, a correction factor known as thedynamic shape factor is applied to Stokes' law. It is defined as the ratio of the resistive force of the irregular particle to that of a spherical particle with the same volume and velocity:[17]
The aerodynamic diameter of an irregular particle is defined as the diameter of the spherical particle with a density of 1000 kg/m3 and the same settling velocity as the irregular particle.[47]
Neglecting the slip correction, the particle settles at the terminal velocity proportional to the square of theaerodynamic diameter,da:[47]
One can apply the aerodynamic diameter to particulate pollutants or to inhaled drugs to predict where in the respiratory tract such particles deposit. Pharmaceutical companies typically use aerodynamic diameter, not geometric diameter, to characterize particles in inhalable drugs.[49]
The previous discussion focused on single aerosol particles. In contrast,aerosol dynamics explains the evolution of complete aerosol populations. The concentrations of particles will change over time as a result of many processes. External processes that move particles outside a volume of gas under study includediffusion, gravitational settling, andelectric charges and other external forces that cause particle migration. A second set of processes internal to a given volume of gas include particle formation (nucleation), evaporation, chemical reaction, and coagulation.[50]
Adifferential equation called theAerosol General Dynamic Equation (GDE) characterizes the evolution of the number density of particles in an aerosol due to these processes.[50]
Change in time = Convective transport +brownian diffusion + gas-particle interactions + coagulation + migration by external forces
As particles and droplets in an aerosol collide with one another, they may undergo coalescence or aggregation. This process leads to a change in the aerosol particle-size distribution, with the mode increasing in diameter as total number of particles decreases.[51] On occasion, particles may shatter apart into numerous smaller particles; however, this process usually occurs primarily in particles too large for consideration as aerosols.
TheKnudsen number of the particle define three different dynamical regimes that govern the behaviour of an aerosol:
where is themean free path of the suspending gas and is the diameter of the particle.[52] For particles in thefree molecular regime,Kn >> 1; particles small compared to the mean free path of the suspending gas.[53] In this regime, particles interact with the suspending gas through a series of "ballistic" collisions with gas molecules. As such, they behave similarly to gas molecules, tending to follow streamlines and diffusing rapidly through Brownian motion. The mass flux equation in the free molecular regime is:
wherea is the particle radius,P∞ andPA are the pressures far from the droplet and at the surface of the droplet respectively,kb is the Boltzmann constant,T is the temperature,CA is mean thermal velocity andα is mass accommodation coefficient.[citation needed] The derivation of this equation assumes constant pressure and constant diffusion coefficient.
Particles are in thecontinuum regime when Kn << 1.[53] In this regime, the particles are big compared to the mean free path of the suspending gas, meaning that the suspending gas acts as a continuous fluid flowing round the particle.[53] The molecular flux in this regime is:
wherea is the radius of the particleA,MA is the molecular mass of the particleA,DAB is the diffusion coefficient between particlesA andB,R is the ideal gas constant,T is the temperature (in absolute units like kelvin), andPA∞ andPAS are the pressures at infinite and at the surface respectively.[citation needed]
Thetransition regime contains all the particles in between the free molecular and continuum regimes orKn ≈ 1. The forces experienced by a particle are a complex combination of interactions with individual gas molecules and macroscopic interactions. The semi-empirical equation describing mass flux is:
whereIcont is the mass flux in the continuum regime.[citation needed] This formula is called the Fuchs-Sutugin interpolation formula. These equations do not take into account the heat release effect.
Aerosol partitioning theory governscondensation on andevaporation from an aerosol surface, respectively. Condensation of mass causes the mode of the particle-size distributions of the aerosol to increase; conversely, evaporation causes the mode to decrease. Nucleation is the process of forming aerosol mass from the condensation of a gaseous precursor, specifically avapor. Net condensation of the vapor requires supersaturation, apartial pressure greater than itsvapor pressure. This can happen for three reasons:[citation needed]
Lowering the temperature of the system lowers the vapor pressure.
Chemical reactions may increase the partial pressure of a gas or lower its vapor pressure.
The addition of additional vapor to the system may lower the equilibrium vapor pressure according toRaoult's law.
There are two types of nucleation processes. Gases preferentially condense onto surfaces of pre-existing aerosol particles, known asheterogeneous nucleation. This process causes the diameter at the mode of particle-size distribution to increase with constant number concentration.[54] With sufficiently high supersaturation and no suitable surfaces, particles may condense in the absence of a pre-existing surface, known ashomogeneous nucleation. This results in the addition of very small, rapidly growing particles to the particle-size distribution.[54]
Water coats particles in aerosols, making themactivated, usually in the context of forming a cloud droplet (such as natural cloud seeding by aerosols from trees in a forest).[55] Following theKelvin equation (based on the curvature of liquid droplets), smaller particles need a higher ambientrelative humidity to maintain equilibrium than larger particles do. The following formula givesrelative humidity at equilibrium:
where is thesaturation vapor pressure above a particle at equilibrium (around a curved liquid droplet),p0 is the saturation vapor pressure (flat surface of the same liquid) andS is the saturation ratio.
Kelvin equation for saturation vapor pressure above a curved surface is:
whererp droplet radius,σ surface tension of droplet,ρ density of liquid,M molar mass,T temperature, andR molar gas constant.
Particles can deposit in thenose,mouth,pharynx andlarynx (the head airways region), deeper within the respiratory tract (from thetrachea to theterminal bronchioles), or in thealveolar region.[65] The location of deposition of aerosol particles within the respiratory system strongly determines the health effects of exposure to such aerosols.[65] This phenomenon led people to invent aerosol samplers that select a subset of the aerosol particles that reach certain parts of the respiratory system.[66]
Examples of these subsets of the particle-size distribution of an aerosol, important in occupational health, include the inhalable, thoracic, and respirable fractions. The fraction that can enter each part of the respiratory system depends on the deposition of particles in the upper parts of the airway.[67] The inhalable fraction of particles, defined as the proportion of particles originally in the air that can enter the nose or mouth, depends on external wind speed and direction and on the particle-size distribution by aerodynamic diameter.[68] The thoracic fraction is the proportion of the particles in ambient aerosol that can reach the thorax or chest region.[69] The respirable fraction is the proportion of particles in the air that can reach the alveolar region.[70] To measure the respirable fraction of particles in air, a pre-collector is used with a sampling filter. The pre-collector excludes particles as the airways remove particles from inhaled air. The sampling filter collects the particles for measurement. It is common to usecyclonic separation for the pre-collector, but other techniques include impactors, horizontalelutriators, and large poremembrane filters.[71]
Two alternative size-selective criteria, often used in atmospheric monitoring, are PM10 and PM2.5. PM10 is defined byISO asparticles which pass through a size-selective inlet with a 50% efficiency cut-off at 10 μm aerodynamic diameter and PM2.5 asparticles which pass through a size-selective inlet with a 50% efficiency cut-off at 2.5 μm aerodynamic diameter. PM10 corresponds to the "thoracic convention" as defined in ISO 7708:1995, Clause 6; PM2.5 corresponds to the "high-risk respirable convention" as defined in ISO 7708:1995, 7.1.[72] TheUnited States Environmental Protection Agency replaced the older standards for particulate matter based on Total Suspended Particulate with another standard based on PM10 in 1987[73] and then introduced standards for PM2.5 (also known as fine particulate matter) in 1997.[74]
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