| Session Details | |
| Section | AS - Atmospheric Sciences |
| Session Title | Volatile Organic Compounds and Their Relationship with Ozone in the Atmosphere |
| Main Convener | Dr. Hai Guo (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR) |
| Co-convener(s) | Dr. Sandra Saunders (University of Western Australia, Australia) Dr. XM Wang (Chinese Academy of Sciences, China) |
| Session Description | Photochemical smog, characterized by high concentrations of ozone (O3) and fine particles, is of great concern in many Asian cities, e.g. Toyko, Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Seoul. Although volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and NOx are known key precursors of O3 formation, the development of effective strategies for reducing O3 pollution in megacities is still problematic due to the non-linear dependency of O3 formation on NOx and VOCs. There are hundreds of VOC species measured in the atmosphere. Their degradation mechanisms involve tens of thousands of reactions with unique rates depending on the atmospheric conditions. Furthermore, they are also emitted into the atmosphere at different mass emission rates, depending on the local and regional industries, land-use and biogenic sources. Hence, it is important to determine which VOC species have the largest influence on the O3 formation in the different regions. Without this knowledge we will not be able to properly formulate effective O3 reduction strategies, i.e. which target pollutants need to be controlled. The proposed session will mainly focus on the relationship between VOCs and O3 formation. |