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1641765 
Journal Article 
Elucidating secondary organic aerosol from diesel and gasoline vehicles through detailed characterization of organic carbon emissions 
Gentner, DR; Isaacman, G; Worton, DR; Chan, AW; Dallmann, TR; Davis, L; Liu, S; Day, DA; Russell, LM; Wilson, KR; Weber, R; Guha, A; Harley, RA; Goldstein, AH 
2012 
1 
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
ISSN: 0027-8424
EISSN: 1091-6490 
109 
45 
18318-18323 
English 
23091031 
WOS:000209407600001 
Emissions from gasoline and diesel vehicles are predominant anthropogenic sources of reactive gas-phase organic carbon and key precursors to secondary organic aerosol (SOA) in urban areas. Their relative importance for aerosol formation is a controversial issue with implications for air quality control policy and public health. We characterize the chemical composition, mass distribution, and organic aerosol formation potential of emissions from gasoline and diesel vehicles, and find diesel exhaust is seven times more efficient at forming aerosol than gasoline exhaust. However, both sources are important for air quality; depending on a region's fuel use, diesel is responsible for 65% to 90% of vehicular-derived SOA, with substantial contributions from aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons. Including these insights on source characterization and SOA formation will improve regional pollution control policies, fuel regulations, and methodologies for future measurement, laboratory, and modeling studies. 
motor vehicle emission factors; photochemical oxidation; urban air quality; volatile organic compound emissions; petroleum fuel composition