Photochemistry

Fe-citrate can photo-catalyze the degradation of citric acid in atmospheric aerosols. Our project aims to study the feedbacks between photochemical aging processes and aerosol microphysics in this Fe-citrate/citric acid system. Mass and size changes of a single, levitated particle are measured in an electrodynamic balance (EDB) during photochemical processing under visible (473 nm) light irradiation. A detailed, processed based numerical model was also developed to predict the evolution of products as well as organic acids degradation in the condensed phase under atmospheric conditions.