Rupturing of Biological Spores As a Source of Secondary Particles in Amazonia

Autor(es)

China, Swarup ; Wang, Bingbing ; Weis, Johannes ; Rizzo, Luciana ; Brito, Joel ; Cirino, Glauber G. ; Kovarik, Libor ; Artaxo, Paulo ; Gilles, Mary K. ; Laskin, Alexander

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: Environmental Science & Technology; v. 50, n. 22, p. 12179-12186, NOV 15 2016.
• Citações Web of Science: 9

Resumo

Airborne biological particles, such as fungal spores and pollen, are ubiquitous in the Earth's atmosphere and may influence the atmospheric environment and climate, impacting air quality, cloud formation, and the Earth's radiation budget. The atmospheric transformations of airborne biological spores at elevated relative humidity remain poorly understood and their climatic role is uncertain. Using an environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM), we observed rupturing of Amazonian fungal spores and subsequent release of submicrometer size fragments after exposure to high humidity. We find that fungal fragments contain elements of inorganic salts (e.g., Na and Cl). They are hygroscopic in nature with a growth factor up to 2.3 at 96% relative humidity, thus they may potentially influence cloud formation. Due to their hygroscopic growth, light scattering cross sections of the fragments are enhanced by up to a factor of 10. Furthermore, rupturing of fungal spores at high humidity may explain the bursting events of new particle formation in Amazonia. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 13/25058-1 - O impacto da poluição urbana de Manaus na composição dos gases e material particulado na floresta amazônica
• Beneficiário: Joel Ferreira de Brito
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 13/05014-0 - GoAmazon: interação da pluma urbana de Manaus com emissões biogênicas da Floresta Amazônica
• Beneficiário: Paulo Eduardo Artaxo Netto
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa de Pesquisa sobre Mudanças Climáticas Globais - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 08/58100-2 - Aeroclima: efeitos diretos e indiretos de aerossóis no clima da Amazônia e Pantanal
• Beneficiário: Paulo Eduardo Artaxo Netto
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa de Pesquisa sobre Mudanças Climáticas Globais - Temático