URCAD is Wednesday, April 25th, from 9am-4pm in the UC, FA Recital Hall, and PAHB.
See amazing student research, like (gaseous pun intended!):
Investigations Of The Acidity And Liquid Water Content Of Chesapeake Bay Aerosols During The OWLETS-2 Campaign
Nicholas Balasus 1:00-1:15pm, UC 204
(Mentor: Christopher Hennigan)
This study characterized aerosol acidity and liquid water content over the Chesapeake Bay during the OWLETS-2 (Ozone Water Land Environmental-Transition Study) campaign. Aerosols are minute solid particles or liquid droplets that are suspended in the atmosphere. Those aerosols that are 2.5 μm or smaller in diameter (i.e. PM2.5) are of particular importance to human health because of their potential to penetrate deeply into the lungs and cause an array of adverse health outcomes. Measurements of inorganic PM2.5 composition and gas-phase ammonia were undertaken at the Hart-Miller Island supersite, which lies east of Baltimore on the Chesapeake Bay. The location of the measurement site was important for multiple reasons, including its proximity to cattle and poultry farms and the influence of the bay as a source/sink of gases. The median aerosol pH for this study was 2.31, which was higher (less acidic) than the median aerosol pH predicted for a site in downtown Baltimore during the summer (1.27). Additionally, pH and aerosol liquid water did not exhibit strong diurnal variations, in contrast to other sites in the eastern U.S. during the summer. These results suggest a strong influence of the Chesapeake Bay and the surrounding area on aerosol chemistry.
