US EPA

2353746 

Journal Article 

Review 

Biogenic volatile organic compound emissions from vegetation fires 

Ciccioli, P; Centritto, M; Loreto, F 

2014 

1 

Plant, Cell and Environment
ISSN: 0140-7791
EISSN: 1365-3040 

37 

8 

1810-1825 

English 

24689733 

10.1111/pce.12336 

WOS:000340291800007 

The aim of this paper was to provide an overview of the current state of the art on research into the emission of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) from vegetation fires. Significant amounts of VOCs are emitted from vegetation fires, including several reactive compounds, the majority belonging to the isoprenoid family, which rapidly disappear in the plume to yield pollutants such as secondary organic aerosol and ozone. This makes determination of fire-induced BVOC emission difficult, particularly in areas where the ratio between VOCs and anthropogenic NOx is favourable to the production of ozone, such as Mediterranean areas and highly anthropic temperate (and fire-prone) regions of the Earth. Fire emissions affecting relatively pristine areas, such as the Amazon and the African savannah, are representative of emissions of undisturbed plant communities. We also examined expected BVOC emissions at different stages of fire development and combustion, from drying to flaming, and from heatwaves coming into contact with unburned vegetation at the edge of fires. We conclude that forest fires may dramatically change emission factors and the profile of emitted BVOCs, thereby influencing the chemistry and physics of the atmosphere, the physiology of plants and the evolution of plant communities within the ecosystem. 

biomass burning; BVOC; combustion phases; forest fires; isoprenoids; plant communities and functional types