Investigation of the sources and formation mechanisms of regional haze in autumn over Pearl River Delta region, China

Abstract:

China has experienced severe haze and visibility degradation problems in recent years accompanying with rapid urbanization and industrialization. In this study, daily fine aerosol samples were concurrently collected during 01-29 October, 2014 in four sites (2 urban sites, 1 upwind site and 1 downwind site) in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region (Figure 1), a mega metropolitan area and manufacturing hub in south China. Main chemical components of PM_2.5 including sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, organic carbon, element carbon and elements, as well as individual particles morphology and mixing state and atmospheric boundary layer information were obtained and analyzed to investigate the sources and evolution mechanisms of typical haze events in the PRD region. The preliminary results showed that daily average PM_2.5 concentrations varied from 25.4 to 174.8 μg m^-3 with an average PM_2.5 concentration of 64.5 μg m^-3. We noted that PM_2.5 concentrations in the downwind site were slightly higher than those in the upwind and urban sites during the haze episodes, indicating the formation and evolution of fine particles during the transport. Further detailed studies, including interpreting observational data and WRF/Chem model simulation, will be carried out to understand the sources and evolution mechanisms of the typical autumn regional haze in the PRD region.