title: Oil sands operations as a large source of secondary organic aerosols.
abstract: Worldwide heavy oil and bitumen deposits amount to 9 trillion barrels of oil distributed in over 280 basins around the world, with Canada home to oil sands deposits of 1.7 trillion barrels. The global development of this resource and the increase in oil production from oil sands has caused environmental concerns over the presence of toxic compounds in nearby ecosystems and acid deposition. The contribution of oil sands exploration to secondary organic aerosol formation, an important component of atmospheric particulate matter that affects air quality and climate, remains poorly understood. Here we use data from airborne measurements over the Canadian oil sands, laboratory experiments and a box-model study to provide a quantitative assessment of the magnitude of secondary organic aerosol production from oil sands emissions. We find that the evaporation and atmospheric oxidation of low-volatility organic vapours from the mined oil sands material is directly responsible for the majority of the observed secondary organic aerosol mass. The resultant production rates of 45-84 tonnes per day make the oil sands one of the largest sources of anthropogenic secondary organic aerosols in North America. Heavy oil and bitumen account for over ten per cent of global oil production today, and this figure continues to grow. Our findings suggest that the production of the more viscous crude oils could be a large source of secondary organic aerosols in many production and refining regions worldwide, and that such production should be considered when assessing the environmental impacts of current and planned bitumen and heavy oil extraction projects globally.
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liggio
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Shao-Meng
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hayden
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Youssef M
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Taha
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stroud
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Darlington
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical &Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8267, USA.
authors.forename: Brian D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Drollette
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gordon
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leithead
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Samar G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Moussa
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Danny
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: O'Brien
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Richard L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Mittermeier
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Jeffrey R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Brook
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Ralf M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Staebler
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Yuemei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Travis W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Tokarek
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Hans D
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Osthoff
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Paul A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Makar
authors.affiliation: Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T4, Canada.
authors.forename: Junhua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical &Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8267, USA.
authors.forename: Desiree L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Plata
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical &Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8267, USA.
authors.forename: Drew R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Gentner
mesh_terms: D000336:Aerosols / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry*; D000416:Alberta; D001272:Atmosphere / Q000737:chemistry*; D002980:Climate; D006802:Human Activities; D006838:Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry; D061329:Oil and Gas Fields; D000066388:Oil and Gas Industry; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry; D010578:Petroleum; D014835:Volatilization
chemical_list: D000336:Aerosols; D006838:Hydrocarbons; D052638:Particulate Matter; D010578:Petroleum; C006647:asphalt