Rapid growth and high cloud-forming potential of anthropogenic sulfate aerosol in a thermal power plant plume during COVID lockdown in India
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: The COVID lockdown presented a unique opportunity to study the anthropogenic emissions from different sectors under relatively cleaner conditions in India. The complex interplays of power production, industry, and transport could be dissected due to the significantly reduced influence of the latter two emission sources. Here, based on measurements of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) activity and chemical composition of atmospheric aerosols during the lockdown, we report an episodic event showing rapid growth and high hygroscopicity of new aerosol particles formed in the SO2 plume from a large coal-fired power plant. These sulfate-rich particles had high CCN activity and number concentration, indicating high cloud-forming potential. Examining the sensitivity of CCN properties under relatively clean conditions over India provides important new clues to delineate contributions of different anthropogenic emission sectors and further to understand their perturbations of past and future climate forcing.
Authors: Aishwarya Singh, Subha S. Raj, Upasana Panda, Snehitha M. Kommula, Christi Jose, Tianjia Liu, Shan Huang, Basudev Swain, Mira L. Pöhlker, Ernesto Reyes-Villegas, Narendra Ojha, Aditya Vaishya, Alessandro Bigi, R. Ravikrishna, Qiao Zhu, Liuhua Shi, James Allen, Scot T. Martin, Gordon McFiggans, Meinrat O. Andreae, Ulrich Pöschl, Hugh Coe, F. Bianchi, Hang Su, Vijay P. Kanawade, Pengfei Liu, Sachin S. Gunthe
Institutions: Georgia Institute of Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Harvard University, Jinan University, University of Bremen, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, University of Manchester, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad University, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Emory University, National Centre for Atmospheric Science, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, King Saud University, University of California San Diego, University of Helsinki, University of Hyderabad
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,290
OpenAlex ID: W4385553552