An experimental study of sulfur and NOx fluxes over grassland

Abstract

Three independent sulfur sensors were used in a study of sulfur eddy fluxes to a field of wheat stubble and mixed grasses, conducted in Southern Ohio in September, 1979. Two of these sensors were modified commercial instruments; one operated with a prefilter to measure gaseous sulfur compounds and the other with a denuder system to provide submicron particulate sulfur data. The third sensor was a prototype system, used to measure total sulfur fluxes. The data obtained indicated that the deposition velocity for gaseous sulfur almost always exceeded that for particulate sulfur; average surface conductances were about 1.0 cm s−1 for gaseous sulfur in the daytime and about 0.4 cm s−1 for particulate sulfur. The data indicate that nighttime values were probably much lower. The total sulfur sensor provided support for these conclusions. The boundary-layer quantity ln(z 0 /z H )was found to be 2.75 ± 0.55, in close agreement with expectations and thus providing some assurance that the site was adequate for eddy flux studies. However, fluxes derived using a prototype NOx sensor were widely scattered, partially as a consequence of sensor noise but also possibly because of the effects of nearby sources of natural nitrogen compounds.