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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 1,639 records · Page 91
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Long term performance of pilot methanogenic digester filled with seashell wastes treating slaughterhouse wastes: Biogas production and environmental impact

High ammonia and organic acids contents of decomposed slaughterhouse waste (SHW) often result in the severe inhibition or even failure of the anaerobic digestion (AD). The two-stage AD system can alleviate the ammonia inhibition; however, addition of alkali is often needed to maintain the neutral condition. In this study, seashell wastes containing high percentage of calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ) were for the first time added in a pilot scale methanogenic digester treating chicken blood waste to retain the microorganisms and provide pH buffers for the substrate. A long-duration performance of this digester was conducted for 400 days under different organic loading rates (OLRs). The results show that methane yields of the digester were 244.8 and 224.9 mL g –1 COD added at OLR of 0.4 and 0.6 g COD L –1 d –1 , respectively, higher than the results of previous studies treating the similar feedstock. An AD system treating blood wastes of a typical poultry slaughterhouse was also proposed for which energy balance and carbon footprint analyses were conducted. The energy production of 0.35 MJ kg –1 blood and carbon emissions reduction of 0.05 kg CO 2 -eq kg –1 blood can be achieved from treating blood waste of the broiler chicken. Finally, this study reveals that using seashell wastes in an AD treating SHW can facilitate the reuse of aquaculture wastes and improve the sustainability of meat industry.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2025

pH adjustment increases biofuel production from inhibitory switchgrass hydrolysates

Biofuels derived from renewable and sustainable lignocellulosic biomass, such as switchgrass, offer a promising means to limit greenhouse gas emissions. However, switchgrass grown under drought conditions contains high levels of chemical compounds that inhibit microbial conversion to biofuels. Fermentation of drought switchgrass hydrolysates by engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Zymomonas mobilis results in lower ethanol production than does fermentation of hydrolyzed switchgrass from a typical rainfall year. Here, it is demonstrated that this inhibitory effect can be alleviated by altering the pH of drought switchgrass hydrolysates produced by two different pretreatment methods: Ammonia Fiber Expansion (AFEX) and Soaking in Aqueous Ammonia (SAA). Fermentation rates and biofuel production by Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Zymomonas mobilis were higher at pH 5.8 than at pH 5.0 from all feedstock years and following both pretreatment methods. SAA pretreatment of drought switchgrass furthermore enabled increased fermentation rates and biofuel titers compared to AFEX pretreatment. A synthetic mimic of switchgrass hydrolysate was developed and identified relief from pH-dependent inhibition by lignocellulose-derived inhibitors as the cause of increased biofuel production above a pH of 5.0. These results demonstrate that SAA pretreatment and pH adjustment can significantly improve fermentation and biofuel production from inhibitory feedstocks by industrial microorganisms.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Reinforcement learning for online adaptation of model predictive controllers: Application to a selective catalytic reduction unit

Here we present a novel application of reinforcement learning (RL) for online dynamic tuning of model predictive controllers (MPC). Applying a state-action-reward-state-action (SARSA) algorithm for temporal difference learning with a control-specific reward function improves the error tracking performance of a standard MPC formulation. The proposed RL approach is also readily adaptable to other MPCs, or entirely different control approaches. Practical details for the implementation of the RL-MPC algorithm are also presented. The proposed algorithm is applied to a case study of controlling nitrogen oxide (NO x ) emissions in an industrial selective catalytic reduction (SCR) unit, a control problem characterized by significant nonlinearity and time delay. Along with an RL-MPC formulation for NOx control, another MPC is proposed to mitigate ammonia slip and decrease ammonia consumption in the SCR. Results showing the efficacy of the RL-MPC for NO x control through learning and implementation on the nonlinear SCR dynamic model are presented.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Integration and validation of some modules for modelling of high-speed chemically reactive flows in two-phase gas-droplet mixtures

Three modules are integrated into the built-in OpenFOAM rhoCentralFoam solver towards accurate and efficient modelling of high-speed chemically reactive flows in two-phase gas-droplet mixtures within the OpenFOAM 10.0 framework. The first module is the mixture-averaged diffusion model. The second module is the built-in OpenFOAM Lagrangian solver coupled with optimised droplet drag coefficient and convective heat transfer coefficient sub-models. The last module is a sparse stiff chemistry solver based on dynamic adaptive hybrid integration (AHI-S). The optimised droplet sub-models are first verified in correct implementation for subsequent simulations in this work. Further, they show good accuracy against experimental and analytical data in the modelling of ammonia droplet acceleration and cooling in the flowing and/or low-temperature air. The accuracy and efficiency gains related to the mixture-averaged diffusion model and the AHI-S chemistry solver are examined by simulating 1-D detonation propagation in ammonia droplet-free/laden ammoniaoxygen mixtures. Numerical results of detonation propagation speed, gaseous temperature, density, and species distributions around the induction zone show good agreement with experimental data and analytical solutions. Compared to the built-in OpenFOAM diffusion model, the mixture-averaged diffusion model provides different numerical predictions of pulsating instabilities in detonation propagation. It shows better accuracy in depicting the detonation structure within the droplet-free section attributed to improved multi-component diffusion modelling. Compared to the built-in OpenFOAM solver EulerImplicit (backward Euler), the AHI-S chemistry solver reduces the computational cost by around 50%. It achieves satisfactory accuracy in calculating detonation propagation speed within the droplet-free section with the optimal efficiency when the safety factor, β, equals 0.5.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2013

Utilization of municipal wastewater for cooling in thermoelectric power plants

A process simulation model has been developed using Aspen Plus® with the OLI (OLI System, Inc.) water chemistry model to predict water quality in the recirculating cooling loop utilizing secondary- and tertiary-treated municipal wastewater as the source of makeup water. Simulation results were compared with pilot-scale experimental data on makeup water alkalinity, loop pH, and ammonia evaporation. The effects of various parameters including makeup water quality, salt formation, NH 3 and CO 2 evaporation mass transfer coefficients, heat load, and operating temperatures were investigated. The results indicate that, although the simulation model can capture the general trends in the loop pH, experimental data on the rates of salt precipitation in the system are needed for more accurate prediction of the loop pH. It was also found that stripping of ammonia and carbon dioxide in the cooling tower can influence the cooling loop pH significantly. The effects of the NH 3 mass transfer coefficient on cooling loop pH appear to be more significant at lower values (e.g., k NH3 < 4×10 -3 m/s) when the makeup water alkalinity is low (e.g., <90 mg/L as CaCO 3 ). The effect of the CO2 mass transfer coefficient was found to be significant only at lower alkalinity values (e.g., k CO2 <4×10 -6 m/s).

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2017

Pilot testing of a heat integrated 0.7 MWe CO 2 capture system with two-stage air-stripping: Emission

The University of Kentucky Center for Applied Energy Research (UKy-CAER) designed, constructed and tested an advanced 0.7 MWe post-combustion CO 2 capture system on a coal-fired power plant using a heat integration process combined with two-stage stripping to enhance the CO 2 absorber performance and lower the cost of CO 2 capture. Evaluation of emissions from the solvent and degradation products was performed to determine the impact on the amine solvent of coal combustion flue gas contaminants and oxygen exposure due to incorporation of the secondary air stripper into the conventional amine absorber/stripper system. The overall amine, ammonia and aldehyde emission levels observed during the baseline 30% monoethanolamine (MEA) solvent testing campaign were generally comparable to previously published reports tested at similar flue gas conditions and system operating hours. Ammonia emissions were correlated to high levels of iron and copper in the solvent, likely as a result of material corrosion.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2019

A cash flow model of an integrated industrial CCS-EOR project in a petrochemical corridor: A case study in Louisiana

Petroleum refineries and petrochemical plants are major CO 2 sources, however, they are also significant capital and employment assets that are unlikely to be replaced in the near term. As a result, nations and states that are interested in reducing the carbon intensity of their economies will need to find ways to reduce the emissions of their existing industrial capacity. Industrial carbon capture provides one potential mechanism for reducing the carbon intensity of existing industrial facilities, however, an economically feasible capture system requires that the captured CO 2 be integrated into a system of transport and storage with income generated either through tax credits, enhanced oil recovery (EOR), or both. Here, we present a cash-flow model of an integrated system with industrial capture, pipeline transport, and EOR, and we parameterize the model with data from Louisiana. Given a 50/bbl oil price, an integrated capture, transport and EOR system that uses ethylene oxide production, ammonia production, or natural gas processing as sources is predicted to have a net present value of about $500 million; hydrogen-based capture has a cash flow of -214 given the same assumptions. Further, we find that the recent 45Q Tax Credit expansion has a positive impact on the cash flow of the system but does not change the overall profitability of the systems under the specified assumptions such that without the tax credits natural gas processing, ammonia production and ethylene oxide production-based capture systems remain cost-effective, while hydrogen-based capture remains unprofitable with or without the tax credit.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Flow condensation heat transfer performance of natural and emerging synthetic refrigerants

There is great interest in predicting flow condensation heat transfer for lower global warming potential (GWP) fluids. This paper analyzes the efficacy of common flow condensation correlations developed for particular fluids in order to identify their suitability to predict heat transfer performance of low GWP fluids. Condensation heat transfer data were extracted from the literature, including 19 papers and 1,473 data points for natural refrigerants [i.e., ammonia (R717), CO 2 (R744), propane (R290), isobutane (R600a)] and 35 papers and 5,030 data points for synthetic refrigerants [i.e., R12, R1234yf, R1234ze(E), R1234ze(Z), R22, R32, R41, R123, R125, R134a, R142b, R152a, R161, R404A, R410A, R448A, R449A, R450A, R452B, R454C, R455A, R513A] encompassing tube diameters of 0.1–11.5 mm, mass fluxes of 55–1200 kg/m2s, and saturation temperatures of -25°C–65°C. Correlations analyzed included Akers et al. (1959), Cavallini et al. (2006, 2011), Kim and Mudawar (2013), Macdonald and Garimella (2016), Shah (1979, 2009, 2013, 2016) and Traviss et al. (1973) for smooth tubes and Chamra et al. (2005) and Kedzierski and Goncalves (1999) for enhanced tubes. Since most studies did not report wall temperature, correlations which relied on wall temperature directly or indirectly were excluded from the analysis. For synthetic refrigerants, mean average error (MAE) ranged from 6%–257%, and Cavallini et al. (2011) and Kim and Mudawar (2013) were the best predictors for emerging synthetic refrigerants. Furthermore, the Kim and Mudawar (2013) correlation was found to best predict the heat transfer performance for propane and R600a data, but most correlations did not accurately predict ammonia and CO 2 flow condensation.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2019

Influence of trimethylaluminum predoses on the growth morphology, film-substrate interface, and microstructure of MOCVD-grown AlN on (1 1 1)Si

Aluminum nitride (AlN) was deposited on (1 1 1) silicon by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition after varied trimethylaluminum “predoses”. Growth morphologies, film-substrate interfaces, and film microstructures were examined using scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. In samples grown with predoses, lateral growth was observed over faceted “patches” formed during the predose. Three-dimensional growth was observed to seed from small islands on the surface of these patches and eventually overgrow them. The three-dimensional growth mode was similar to that observed when AlN was grown without a predose, resulting in similar morphologies in all films, regardless of predose, after the islands coalesced. The AlN-silicon interface was found to be predominantly amorphous when no predose was used. However, narrow regions were observed over which the film was in atomic registry with the substrate. This indicates AlN nucleates in epitaxy with the substrate and amorphous silicon nitride forms between nucleation sites due to ammonia exposure. Films grown with predoses had structurally abrupt interfaces, suggesting aluminum within the observed patch features inhibits the reaction between ammonia and silicon at the onset of growth. A structure distinct from both wurtzite AlN and diamond cubic silicon was observed at the substrate interface in films grown with a predose, consistent with either zinc blende AlN or a strained Si/Al alloy. A mosaic microstructure was observed in all films, grown with or without predoses, which consisted of sub-boundaries formed by clusters of threading dislocations. Finally, threading dislocations, separated by hundreds of nanometers, were found to be tilted along common directions, providing evidence for a dislocation bending mechanism possibly enhanced by the predose.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Toward sustainable production of N-containing products via nonthermal plasma-enhanced conversion of natural gas resources

Nonthermal plasmas can directly activate and cleave the strong chemical bonds in molecular nitrogen and methane to facilitate the transformation of these inherently stable molecules through the application of electrical energy. Here, we report a low temperature, atmospheric pressure, nonthermal plasma for the “one-pot” synthesis of olefins, alkynes, higher molecular weight hydrocarbons, ammonia, and nitrogen-containing liquids from a representative shale gas feed enriched with nitrogen. Furthermore, we reproducibly observe a wide range of valuable and synthetically challenging gas-phase and liquid-phase products containing C-N, C-C, and N-H bonding by controlling the N 2 concentration in the inlet feed stream. In nitrogen-lean regimes, hydrocarbon products dominate (e.g., ethylene, acetylene, etc.), while nitrogen-rich regimes promote incorporation of nitrogen into the products, leading to the formation of ammonia and liquid products containing a variety of functionalities (e.g., nitriles, amines, heterocycles). High resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry was used to measure molecular weights and identify the chemical formulas of the liquid products. Van Krevelen diagrams were created and showed many products with compositions around H/C = 2 and N/C = 0.5, indicating the potential importance of intermediate species with these ratios for liquid formation (e.g., CH 3 CN + H).

03 NATURAL GAS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Mo-N-co-doped mesoporous TiO{sub 2} microspheres with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity

Highlights: • The Mo-N-co-doped mesoporous TiO{sub 2} microspheres were synthesized via a solvothermal method and further nitriding treatment. • The properties of TiO{sub 2} microspheres can be tuned by Mo-N-co-doping. • Photocatalytic rate is much higher than Pure TiO{sub 2} catalyst powder and Mo doped TiO{sub 2} microspheres. • The higher activity is attributed to the large BET surface area, narrow band gap and intense light absorbance in visible region. - Abstract: Mo-N-co-doped mesoporous TiO{sub 2} microspheres were synthesized via a solvothermal method, followed by nitriding treatment under ammonia gas flow. The efficiency of the samples was investigated by monitoring the degradation of Rhodamine-B under visible light irradiation. The experimental results revealed that Mo-N-co-doped mesoporous TiO{sub 2} microspheres showed better performances than Mo-TiO{sub 2} microspheres. It was observed that; 0.1% molar quantity of Mo doped on TiO{sub 2} at 500 °C for 2 h under nitriding conditions gave highest photocatalytic activities. The nitridation under ammonia gas of Mo-TiO{sub 2} samples created oxygen vacant sites and led to incorporation of substitutional and interstitial Nitrogen. The enhanced visible light photocatalytic activities of Mo-N-co-doped TiO{sub 2} photocatalyst was attributed to the large surface areas, narrow band gap and intense light absorbance in visible region. This study may create a promising and eco-friendly method towards synthesis of metal and non-metals co-doped on semiconductor materials to improve their photocatalytic activities and applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Preparation and CO 2 adsorption properties of soft-templated mesoporous carbons derived from chestnut tannin precursors

This paper presents a soft templating approach for mesoporous carbon using the polyphenolic heterogeneous biomass, chestnut tannin, as the carbon precursor. By varying synthesis parameters such as tannin:surfactant ratio, cross-linker, reaction time and acid catalyst, the pore structure could be controllably modulated from lamellar to a more ordered hexagonal array. Carbonization at 600 °C under nitrogen produced a bimodal micro-mesoporous carbonaceous material exhibiting enhanced hydrogen bonding with the soft template, similar to that shown by soft-templating of phenolic-formaldehyde resins, allowing for a tailorable pore size. By utilizing the acidic nature of chestnut tannin (i.e. gallic and ellagic acid), hexagonal-type mesostructures were formed without the use of an acid catalyst. The porous carbon materials were activated with ammonia to increase the available surface area and incorporate nitrogen-containing functionality which led to a maximum CO 2 adsorption capacity at 1 bar of 3.44 mmol/g and 2.27 mmol/g at 0 °C and 25 °C, respectively. The ammonia-activated carbon exhibited multiple peaks in the adsorption energy distribution which indicates heterogeneity of adsorption sites for CO 2 capture.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2017

Atomic and molecular adsorption on Fe(110)

Iron is the principal catalyst for the ammonia synthesis process and the Fischer–Tropsch process, as well as many other heterogeneously catalyzed reactions. It is thus of fundamental importance to understand the interactions between the iron surface and various reaction intermediates. Here in this paper, we present a systematic study of atomic and molecular adsorption behavior over Fe(110) using periodic, self-consistent density functional theory (DFT-GGA) calculations. The preferred binding sites, binding energies, and the corresponding surface deformation energies of five atomic species (H, C, N, O, and S), six molecular species (NH 3 , CH 4 , N 2 , CO, HCN, and NO), and eleven molecular fragments (CH, CH 2 , CH 3 , NH, NH 2 , OH, CN, COH, HCO, NOH, and HNO) were determined on the Fe(110) surface at a coverage of 0.25 monolayer. The binding strengths calculated using the PW91 functional decreased in the following order: C> CH > N > O > S > NH > COH > CN > CH2 > NOH > OH > HNO > HCO > NH2 > H > NO > HCN > CH 3 > CO > N 2 > NH 3 . No stable binding structures were observed for CH 4 . The estimated diffusion barriers and pathways, as well as the adsorbate-surface and intramolecular vibrational modes of all the adsorbates at their preferred binding sites, were identified. Using the calculated adsorption energetics, we constructed the potential energy surfaces for a few surface reactions including the decomposition of methane, ammonia, dinitrogen, carbon monoxide, and nitric oxide. These potential energy surfaces provide valuable insight into the ability of Fe(110) to catalyze common elementary steps.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2017

Benefits to decomposition rates when using digestate as compost co-feedstock: Part I – Focus on physicochemical parameters

Highlights: • Co-composting OFMSW and digestate results in improved composting rates. • Reactors with 20–40% (%ww) digestate had the best performance. •Stability time was 30–36% shorter in the reactors with 20–40% digestate (%ww). •Inhibition at high digestate levels probably due to ammonia. • TAN from the digestate may have improved carbon removal rates. - Abstract: Anaerobic digestion (AD) has gained a significant role in municipal solid waste management, but managing a high volume of digestate is one of the challenges with AD technology. One option is to mix digestate with fresh and/or stabilized organic waste and then feed to the composting process. In this study, the effect of co-composting anaerobic digestate (in different quantities) on a composting process was investigated. The digestate was prepared in a pilot-scale 500 L high solids dry anaerobic digester and composting was completed in eight 25 L reactors with different ratios of digestate to fresh feedstock from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW). The digestate constituted 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 75, or 100% (wet mass) of the feedstock. The co-composting experiment was conducted in two phases: active aeration and curing. Monitored parameters included: process temperature, aeration rate, oxygen concentration of the outlet gas, mass changes, total solids, organic matter, pH, and electrical conductivity. In addition, respirometry, C:N ratio, ammonium to nitrate ratio, and Solvita® tests were used to quantify stability and maturity end points. The results showed that the addition of digestate to the OFMSW increased composting reaction rates in all cases, with peak performance occurring within the ratio of 20–40% of digestate addition on a wet weight basis. Reactor performance may have been influenced by the high total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) levels in the digestate. Composting rates increased as TAN levels increased up to 5000 TAN mg kg{sup −1} DM; however, TAN may have become inhibitory at higher levels.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2015

Fe Protein-Independent Substrate Reduction by Nitrogenase MoFe Protein Variants

The reduction of substrates catalyzed by nitrogenase normally requires nucleotide-dependent Fe protein delivery of electrons to the MoFe protein, which contains the active site FeMo-cofactor. Here, it is reported that independent substitution of three amino acids (ß-98Tyr→His, α-64Tyr→His, and ß-99Phe→His) located between the P cluster and FeMo-cofactor within the MoFe protein endows it with the ability to reduce protons to H2, azide to ammonia, and hydrazine to ammonia without the need for Fe protein or ATP. Instead, electrons can be provided by the low potential reductant polyaminocarboxylate ligated Eu(II) (Em -1.1 to -0.84 V vs NHE). The crystal structure of the ß-98Tyr→His variant MoFe protein was determined, revealing only small changes near the amino acid substitution that affect the solvent structure and immediate vicinity between the P cluster and the FeMo-cofactor, with no global conformational changes observed. Computational normal mode analysis on the nitrogenase complex reveal coupling in the motions of the Fe protein and the region of the MoFe protein with these three amino acids, which suggests a possible mechanism for how Fe protein might communicate deep within the MoFe protein subtle changes that profoundly affect intramolecular electron transfer and substrate reduction. This work was supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation (MCB-1330807) to JWP and LCS. This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences (DE-SC0010687 and DE-SC0010834 to LCS and DRD) and the Division of Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Bio-Sciences (SR). The coordinates for the ß-98His MoFe protein were deposited with the Protein Data Bank (PDB 4XPI).

Danyal, Karamatullah↗
DOE OSTI2025

Techno-Economic Analysis and Life Cycle Assessment of Alternative Fuels for Locomotives in the U.S. Freight Rail Sector

Freight rail is more energy-efficient than truck transport over long-haul distances, offering a low-energy and emissions-intensive option for transporting freight. This study evaluates techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment of seven alternative unblended fuels for freight locomotive engines─biodiesel, renewable diesel (RD), bio-oils, methanol, dimethyl ether (DME), ethanol, and ammonia─across 16 fuel pathways utilizing soybean, corn, woody biomass, renewable hydrogen, and waste sources, e.g., sludge, manure, and industrial CO 2 , and compares these to conventional diesel. The minimum fuel selling price (MFSP) ranged from $\$2.05$ to $\$8.27$ per diesel gallon equivalent (2020 US dollars), with biocrude and RDs produced from hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of sludge having the lowest MFSPs due to coproduct credits and avoided waste treatment cost. Life cycle GHG emissions ranged from −41 to 53 g of CO 2 e/MJ. RD from waste via HTL achieves negative emissions by diverting sludge/manure from GHG-intensive conventional management. Few pathways such as biocrude, methanol, and DME require additional control for SO X emissions in the refinery, while ethanol, FT-diesel, and bio-oil require additional control for particulate matter emissions. Bio-oil and RD from sludge have lower marginal abatement cost or MAC (–$\$38$/tonne CO 2 lowest) while methanol and ammonia with renewable hydrogen have higher MAC ($\$490$/tonne CO 2 maximum).

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Kinetics, Products, and Brown Carbon Formation by Aqueous-Phase Reactions of Glycolaldehyde with Atmospheric Amines and Ammonium Sulfate

Glycolaldehyde (GAld) is a C 2 water-soluble aldehyde produced during the atmospheric oxidation of isoprene and many other species and is commonly found in cloudwater. Previous work has established that glycolaldehyde evaporates more readily from drying aerosol droplets containing ammonium sulfate (AS) than does glyoxal, methylglyoxal, or hydroxyacetone, which implies that it does not oligomerize as quickly as these other species. Here, we report NMR measurements of glycolaldehyde’s aqueous-phase reactions with AS, methylamine, and glycine. Reaction rate constants are smaller than those of respective glyoxal and methylglyoxal reactions in the pH range of 3–6. In follow-up cloud chamber experiments, deliquesced glycine and AS seed particles were found to take up glycolaldehyde and methylamine and form brown carbon. At very high relative humidity, these changes were more than 2 orders of magnitude faster than predicted by our bulk liquid NMR kinetics measurements, suggesting that reactions involving surface-active species at crowded air–water interfaces may play an important role. The high-resolution liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–mass spectrometric analysis of filter extracts of unprocessed AS + GAld seed particles identified sugar-like C 6 and C 12 GAld oligomers, including proposed product 3-deoxyglucosone, with and without modification by reactions with ammonia to diimine and imidazole forms. Chamber exposure to methylamine gas, cloud processing, and simulated sunlight increased the incorporation of both ammonia and methylamine into oligomers. Many C 4 –C 16 imidazole derivatives were detected in an extract of chamber-exposed aerosol along with a predominance of N-derivatized C 6 and C 12 glycolaldehyde oligomers, suggesting that GAld is capable of forming brown carbon SOA.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗