Modeling of gas adsorption by aerosol plumes emitted from industrial sources

Adsorption of trace atmospheric gases by aerosol particles contributes to the evolution of concentration distribution of the trace constituents and can affect subsequent chemical reactions in the atmosphere. We suggest a two dimensional model of adsorption of trace atmospheric constituents by aerosol particles in air pollution plume emitted from an industrial source. The model is based on an application of theory of turbulent diffusion in the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) in conjunction with plume dispersion model and model of gas adsorption by porous solid particles. The wind velocity profiles used in the simulations were fitted from our data previously obtained in field measurements conducted in the Northern Negev (Israel) using the experimental wind mast. The developed model allows analyzing spatial and temporal evolution of adsorbate concentration in the gaseous phase as well as in the particulate matter. The adsorbate concentration distributions are calculated for the particulate matter PM_2.5–10, which is typical for industrial emissions. Analysis is performed for different meteorological conditions and atmospheric stability classes. It is shown that the concentration of gases adsorbed by aerosol plume strongly depends on the level of atmospheric turbulence. The obtained results are compared with the available experimental data.