Kinetic mechanism for predicting secondary organic aerosol formation from the reaction of d-limonene with ozone.

A semi-explicit mechanism of d-limonene was developed and tested against experimental results obtained from large outdoor Teflon film chambers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) smog chamber facility. The model couples gas-phase reactions with partitioning processes and possible particle-phase reactions. The model not only tracks the gas-phase ozonolysis reaction of d-limonene, but also provides a reasonable prediction of the secondary aerosol mass production under different conditions. Limononaldehyde was the major identified product, followed by limona-ketone, referred to here as keto-limonene, keto-limononaldehyde, limononic acid, and keto-limononic acid. Identified particle-phase products accounted for about 60% of the observed particle mass in the initial stages of the reaction. Model sensitivity was tested and discussed with respect to effects of temperature, humidity, water uptake, and reactant concentrations.