Atmospheric nitrogen compounds: occurrence, composition and deposition

Abstract

Traffic in cities and on highways is an important contributor to NOy atmospheric pollution in open areas. In this situation both the concentration and composition of NOy compounds show a wide variation and are dependent on meteorological and atmospheric chemical conditions. The proportion of NOz compounds (HNO3 + nitrate + PAN + PPN + N2O5 + organic nitrates) increases while that of NOx decreases with increasing ozone concentrations. The dry deposition velocity of NO2 was determined to be 0.2 cm s−1 above vegetation. The dry deposition contribution of the different NOy compounds was evaluated. The possiblity that a significant contribution is caused by a group of unidentified NOy compounds cannot be excluded. Therefore, future investigations of atmospheric pollution of sensitive ecosystems, at conditions with a relatively high atmospheric content of NOy compared to that of NH3, ought to take into consideration the possible contribution from unidentified NOy compounds. This also implies that atmospheric research into the identity, occurrence, sources and sinks of these compounds—as well as further developments of sampling and analytical methods—should be given a high priority.