Paulette Middleton

Bio: Paulette Middleton is an academic researcher from University at Albany, SUNY. The author has contributed to research in topics: Deposition (aerosol physics) & Chemical reaction. The author has an hindex of 8, co-authored 10 publications receiving 2206 citations.

The second generation regional acid deposition model chemical mechanism for regional air quality modeling

Abstract: A state-of-the-art gas phase chemical mechanism for modeling atmospheric chemistry on a regional scale is presented. The second generation Regional Acid Deposition Model (RADM2) gas phase chemical mechanism, like its predecessor RADM1, is highly nonlinear, since predicted ozone, sulfate, nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide concentrations are complicated functions of NO{sub x} and nonmethane hydrocarbon concentrations. The RADM2 chemical mechanism is an upgrade of RADM1 in that (1) three classes of higher alkanes are used instead of one, (2) a more detailed treatment of aromatic chemistry is used, (3) the two higher alkene classes now represent internal and terminal alkenes, (4) ketones and dicarbonyl species are treated as classes distinct from aldehydes, (5) isoprene is now included as an explicit species, and (6) there is a more detailed treatment of peroxy radical-peroxy radical reactions. As a result of these improvements the RADM2 mechanism simulates the concentrations of peroxyacetyl nitrate, HNO3, and H{sub 2}O{sub 2} under a wide variety of environmental conditions. Comparisons of RADM2 mechanism with the RADM1 mechanism predictions and selected environmental chamber experimental results indicate that for typical atmospheric conditions, both mechanisms reliably predict O{sub 3}, sulfate and nitric acid concentrations. The RADM2 mechanism gives lower and presumably moremore » realistic predictions of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} because of its more detailed treatment of peroxy radical-peroxy radical reactions.« less

A three-dimensional Eulerian acid deposition model: Physical concepts and formulation

Abstract: We have developed a three-dimensional Eulerian regional acid deposition model to calculate episodic chemical concentrations and dry and wet deposition of acids in North America. This transport, transformation, and deposition modeling system subdivides the troposphere over the eastern United States, southeastern Canada, and the western Atlantic Ocean into a six-level, 30 by 30 horizontal grid with a horizontal grid size of 80 x 80 km/sup 2/. Transport and vertical diffusion of 24 trace gases and particles are calculated using temporally and spatially varying meteorology, provided by a mesoscale meteorological model. A gas phase chemical reaction mechanism is used to simulate concentrations and chemical conversion rates for 36 species, including 14 stable organics and 11 short-lived radicals. Altitude-, latitude-, and season-dependent photolysis rates for nine reactions in the chemical mechanism are specified using a delta-Eddington radiative transfer model which includes O/sub 2/ and O/sub 3/ absorption, scattering and absorption by clouds and aerosols, Rayleigh scattering, and ground relections.

Global modeling of tropospheric chemistry with assimilated meteorology : Model description and evaluation

Abstract: We present a first description and evaluation of GEOS-CHEM, a global three-dimensional (3-D) model of tropospheric chemistry driven by assimilated meteorological observations from the Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) of the NASA Data Assimilation Office (DAO). The model is applied to a 1-year simulation of tropospheric ozone-NOx-hydrocarbon chemistry for 1994, and is evaluated with observations both for 1994 and for other years. It reproduces usually to within 10 ppb the concentrations of ozone observed from the worldwide ozonesonde data network. It simulates correctly the seasonal phases and amplitudes of ozone concentrations for different regions and altitudes, but tends to underestimate the seasonal amplitude at northern midlatitudes. Observed concentrations of NO and peroxyacetylnitrate (PAN) observed in aircraft campaigns are generally reproduced to within a factor of 2 and often much better. Concentrations of HNO3 in the remote troposphere are overestimated typically by a factor of 2-3, a common problem in global models that may reflect a combination of insufficient precipitation scavenging and gas-aerosol partitioning not resolved by the model. The model yields an atmospheric lifetime of methylchloroform (proxy for global OH) of 5.1 years, as compared to a best estimate from observations of 5.5 plus or minus 0.8 years, and simulates H2O2 concentrations observed from aircraft with significant regional disagreements but no global bias. The OH concentrations are approximately 20% higher than in our previous global 3-D model which included an UV-absorbing aerosol. Concentrations of CO tend to be underestimated by the model, often by 10-30 ppb, which could reflect a combination of excessive OH (a 20% decrease in model OH could be accommodated by the methylchloroform constraint) and an underestimate of CO sources (particularly biogenic). The model underestimates observed acetone concentrations over the South Pacific in fall by a factor of 3; a missing source from the ocean may be implicated.

Review of the Governing Equations, Computational Algorithms, and Other Components of the Models-3 Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) Modeling System

Abstract: This article describes the governing equations, computational algorithms, and other components entering into the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system. This system has been designed to approach air quality as a whole by including state-ofthe-science capabilities for modeling multiple air quality issues, including tropospheric ozone, fine particles, acid deposition, and visibility degradation. CMAQ was also designed to have multiscale capabilities so that separate models were not needed for urban and regional scale air quality modeling. By making CMAQ a modeling system that addresses multiple pollutants and different spatial scales, it has a “one-atmosphere” perspective that combines the efforts of the scientific community. To implement multiscale capabilities in CMAQ, several issues (such as scalable atmospheric dynamics and generalized coordinates), which depend on the desired model resolution, are addressed. A set of governing equations for compressible nonhydrostatic atmospheres is available to better resolve atmospheric dynamics at smaller scales. Because CMAQ is designed to handle scale-dependent meteorological formulations and a large amount of flexibility, its governing equations are expressed in a generalized coordinate system. This approach ensures consistency between CMAQ and the meteorological modeling system. The generalized coordinate system determines the necessary grid and coordinate transformations, and it can accommodate various vertical coordinates and map projections. The CMAQ modeling system simulates various chemical and physical processes that are thought to be important for understanding atmospheric trace gas transformations and distributions. The modeling system contains three types of modeling components (Models-3): a meteorological modeling system for the description of atmospheric states and motions, emission models for man-made and natural emissions that are injected into the atmosphere, and a chemistry-transport modeling system for simulation of the chemical transformation and fate. The chemical transport model includes the following process modules: horizontal advection, vertical advection, mass conservation adjustments for advection processes, horizontal diffusion, vertical diffusion, gas-phase chemical reactions and solvers, photolytic rate computation, aqueous-phase reactions and cloud mixing, aerosol dynamics, size distributions and chemistry, plume chemistry effects, and gas and aerosol deposition velocity estimation. This paper describes the Models-3 CMAQ system, its governing equations, important science algorithms, and a few application examples. This review article cites 114 references. DOI: 10.1115/1.2128636

The atmospheric input of trace species to the world ocean

Abstract: Over the past decade it has become apparent that the atmosphere is a significant pathway for the transport of many natural and pollutant materials from the continents to the ocean. The atmospheric input of many of these species can have an impact (either positive or negative) on biological processes in the sea and on marine chemical cycling. For example, there is now evidence that the atmosphere may be an important transport path for such essential nutrients as iron and nitrogen in some regions. In this report we assess current data in this area, develop global scale estimates of the atmospheric fluxes of trace elements, mineral aerosol, nitrogen species, and synthetic organic compounds to the ocean; and compare the atmospheric input rates of these substances to their input via rivers. Trace elements considered were Pb, Cd, Zn, Cu, Ni, As, Hg, Sn, Al, Fe, Si, and P. Oxidized and reduced forms of nitrogen were considered, including nitrate and ammonium ions and the gaseous species NO, NO2, HNO3, and NH3. Synthetic organic compounds considered included polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs), DDTs, chlordane, dieldrin, and hexachlorobenzenes (HCBs). Making this assessment was difficult because there are very few actual measurements of deposition rates of these substances to the ocean. However, there are considerably more data on the atmospheric concentrations of these species in aerosol and gaseous form. Mean concentration data for 10° × 10° ocean areas were determined from the available concentration data or from extrapolation of these data into other regions. These concentration distributions were then combined with appropriate exchange coefficients and precipitation fields to obtain the global wet and dry deposition fluxes. Careful consideration was given to atmospheric transport processes as well as to removal mechanisms and the physical and physicochemical properties of aerosols and gases. Only annual values were calculated. On a global scale atmospheric inputs are generally equal to or greater than riverine inputs, and for most species atmospheric input to the ocean is significantly greater in the northern hemisphere than in the southern hemisphere. For dissolved trace metals in seawater, global atmospheric input dominates riverine input for Pb, Cd, and Zn, and the two transport paths are roughly equal for Cu, Ni, As, and Fe. Fluxes and basin-wide deposition of trace metals are generally a factor of 5-10 higher in the North Atlantic and North Pacific regions than in the South Atlantic and South Pacific. Global input of oxidized and reduced nitrogen species are roughly equal to each other, although the major fraction of oxidized nitrogen enters the ocean in the northern hemisphere, primarily as a result of pollution sources. Reduced nitrogen species are much more uniformly distributed, suggesting that the ocean itself may be a significant source. The global atmospheric input of such synthetic organic species as HCH,PCBs, DDT, and HCB completely dominates their input via rivers.