Abstract
Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds (BVOCs) include many chemical compounds emitted by plants into the atmosphere. These compounds have a great effect on biosphere–atmosphere interactions and may affect the concentration of atmospheric pollutants, with further consequences on human health and forest ecosystems. Novel methods to measure and determine BVOCs in the atmosphere are of compelling importance considering the ongoing climate changes. In this study, we developed a fast and easy-to-handle analytical methodology to sample these compounds in field experiments using solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fibers at the atmospheric level. An improvement of BVOCs adsorption from SPME fibers was obtained by coupling the fibers with fans to create a dynamic sampling system. This innovative technique was tested sampling Q. ilex BVOCs in field conditions in comparison with the conventional static SPME sampling technique. The results showed a great potential of this dynamic sampling system to collect BVOCs at the atmosphere level, improving the efficiency and sensitivity of SPME fibers. Indeed, our novel device was able to reduce the sampling time, increase the amount of BVOCs collected through the fibers and add information regarding the emissions of these compounds at the environmental level.
Highlights
Trees evolved in arid and semi-arid environments, such as the Mediterranean basin, have developed several defense mechanisms to cope with drought, changing their physiology and metabolism
The Q. ilex Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds (BVOCs) emission pattern is mainly characterized by monoterpenes [45,46,47,48,49,50]
Each solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fiber was held in the middle of a 17 cm long aluminum cylinder, perpendicularly connected to a smaller vertical cylinder 7 cm long acting as a support
Summary
Trees evolved in arid and semi-arid environments, such as the Mediterranean basin, have developed several defense mechanisms to cope with drought, changing their physiology and metabolism One of these mechanisms is the biosynthesis of Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds (BVOCs), a large group of secondary metabolites, among which volatile isoprenoids (mono-, sesqui- and homo-terpenes) are the most important [1,2]. The estimated amount of isoprene and monoterpenes emitted by Mediterranean forests is about 4.5 kg km−2 day−1 [11], and it has a great impact on the atmospheric chemistry of this vulnerable habitat [11,12] These compounds have a great effect on biosphere– atmosphere interactions by altering aerosol growth processes, cloud formation and, in general, modifying atmospheric reactivity [13]. Increasing global concerns about the effects of atmospheric pollutants on human health and forest functioning are leading researchers to look for novel methods to collect and measure BVOCs in the atmosphere [26]
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