A new CAICE collaborative study entitled “Multistep Phase Transitions in Sea Surface Microlayer Droplets and Aerosol Mimics using Microfluidic Wells” was published on June 12 in ACS Earth and Space Chemistry, providing new insight into sea spray aerosol phases.
Oceanic sea spray is one of the largest contributors of atmospheric aerosol particles worldwide. The phase of aerosol particles is known to impact radiative forcing and cloud nucleation. However, as chemically complex aqueous systems that include mixtures of biological, organic, and salt constituents, it is a challenge to predict the phase of sea spray aerosol especially as they age in the atmosphere. In this study, phase behavior of sea surface microlayer (SSML) sample and chemical mimics are investigated using a microfluidic pervaporation approach. The findings shed light on sea spray aerosol phase as a function of composition and relative humidity and demonstrate multistep phase transitions for these complex systems.
Watch the included videos to see the multistep phase transitions in the SSML droplets.
To read the full study, visit here:
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsearthspacechem.9b00121