Nitrous acid (HONO) stands as one of the main species in tropospheric chemistry, primarily in polluted, urban regions. Due to its fast photodissociation, it is considered as one the main sources of the hydroxyl radical (OH), the most relevant oxidant in the atmosphere. Therefore, the evaluation of HONO concentration profiles and their temporal evolution is important for urban atmospheric chemistry. In this study, we report a year-round measurement of HONO vertical concentration profiles, as well as their diurnal and seasonal evolution during 2016 in Madrid. Making use of the Multi-AXis Differential Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) technique in addition to inversion algorithms, we retrieved the aerosol extinction and trace gas concentrations. Our results show HONO maximum values of 3.5-4 ppbv in the early morning and late afternoon, and minima around noon, when the lifetime of HONO against photolysis is shortest. On average, there is a pronounced HONO concentration gradient across different seasons, being higher during the autumn and winter months. Finally, we estimate and discuss the production rate of OH radicals from HONO photolysis, along with its variability throughout the year.
Keywords: Air quality; Atmospheric chemistry; HONO; MAX-DOAS; Remote sensing.
Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.