Atmospheric evolution of emissions from a boreal forest fire: the formation of highly functionalized oxygen-, nitrogen-, and sulfur-containing organic compounds

14 January 2021

Forest fires are an important source of reactive organic gases and aerosols to the atmosphere. The authors analyzed organic aerosols collected from an aircraft above a boreal forest fire and reported an increasing contribution from compounds containing oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur as the plume aged, with sulfide and ring-bound nitrogen functionality. Their results demonstrated chemistry that is important in biomass burning but also in urban/developing regions with high local nitrogen and sulfur emissions.

The press release from Yale University can be found at: https://seas.yale.edu/news-events/news/close-look-forest-fire-smoke-yields-new-clues-about-air-pollution

Contact: Drew R. Gentner (drew.gentner@yale.edu)