What Are the Sources of Unclassified Organosulfates in the Atmosphere?
10 affiliations
- 1Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong999077, China.
- 2Atmospheric Chemistry Department (ACD), Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS), Leipzig04318, Germany.
- 3State Key Laboratory of Loess Science, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an710061, China.
- 4Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an710049, China.
- 5University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, China.
- 6Division of Environment and Sustainability, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong999077, China.
- 7Department of Chemistry, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong999077, China.
- 8School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao266237, China.
- 9Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention, Department of Environmental Science & Engineering, Institute of Atmospheric Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai200433, China.
- 10The Institute of Environment, Energy, and Sustainability, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong999077, China.
Abstract
Organosulfates (OSs) are ubiquitous components of atmospheric aerosols, contributing up to 30% of total aerosol mass, yet their sources remain poorly constrained. Recently, we have compiled 366 ambient OS molecular formulas from previous field studies and found that only about 36% can be assigned to known precursors or formation mechanisms. These mechanisms primarily explain the production of freshly formed OSs via photochemical and/or condensed-phase reactions associated with different precursors. Consequently, 64% of observed OS formulas remain unclassified. Concurrently, laboratory studies have revealed that certain OSs can undergo efficient multiphase transformation through heterogeneous and aqueous-phase reactions, yielding higher-generation OS products. Although such studies are still limited, the identified transformation OS products can account for about 17% of all reported ambient OS formulas and, notably, explain an additional 5% of previously unclassified OS signals. These findings imply that a potential fraction of ambient OSs may not be freshly formed but rather secondary or higher-generation products arising from chemical transformation. Current field analyses and atmospheric models focus mostly on precursor-specific OS formation pathways, largely overlooking the role of OS transformation. We therefore propose that transformation of freshly formed OSs is an important and previously underrecognized source of unclassified ambient OSs.
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BibTeX
@article{lai2026what,
title = {{What Are the Sources of Unclassified Organosulfates in the Atmosphere?}},
author = {Donger Lai and Thomas Schaefer and Ru-Jin Huang and Jian Zhen Yu and Hartmut Herrmann and Man Nin Chan},
journal = {Environmental science \& technology},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1021/acs.est.6c08394},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42915424},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - What Are the Sources of Unclassified Organosulfates in the Atmosphere?
AU - Donger Lai
AU - Thomas Schaefer
AU - Ru-Jin Huang
AU - Jian Zhen Yu
AU - Hartmut Herrmann
AU - Man Nin Chan
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/01
JO - Environmental science & technology
DO - 10.1021/acs.est.6c08394
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42915424
AB - Organosulfates (OSs) are ubiquitous components of atmospheric aerosols, contributing up to 30% of total aerosol mass, yet their sources remain poorly constrained. Recently, we have compiled 366 ambient OS molecular formulas from previous field studies and found that only about 36% can be assigned to known precursors or formation mechanisms. These mechanisms primarily explain the production of freshly formed OSs via photochemical and/or condensed-phase reactions associated with different precursors. Consequently, 64% of observed OS formulas remain unclassified. Concurrently, laboratory studies have revealed that certain OSs can undergo efficient multiphase transformation through heterogeneous and aqueous-phase reactions, yielding higher-generation OS products. Although such studies are still limited, the identified transformation OS products can account for about 17% of all reported ambient OS formulas and, notably, explain an additional 5% of previously unclassified OS signals. These findings imply that a potential fraction of ambient OSs may not be freshly formed but rather secondary or higher-generation products arising from chemical transformation. Current field analyses and atmospheric models focus mostly on precursor-specific OS formation pathways, largely overlooking the role of OS transformation. We therefore propose that transformation of freshly formed OSs is an important and previously underrecognized source of unclassified ambient OSs.
SN - 0013-936X
SN - 1520-5851
ER -