Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (52:236)
Spring 2006
Charles Stanier
Dept. of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
1. Time and Place of Course
This is a small course, so we have considerable flexibility.
Scheduled times are currently 3:30 – 4:45 PM in 134 BHC
2. Instructor
Charles (Charlie) Stanier
Office: 4122 Seamans Center
Phone: 354-0969
Email: cstanier@engineering.uiowa.edu
Office Hours: TBD
3. Textbooks
• Seinfeld, J.H. and Pandis, S.N. “Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics,” 2nd ed., 2001.
• McElroy, Michael. McElroy, M.B., “The Atmospheric Environment: Effects of Human
Activity”, Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-00691-1, 2002.
4. Target Audience & Prerequisites
a) The class is aimed at a wide range of student levels – from seniors and beginning
graduate students to advance graduate students.
b) In-depth assignments and mini-projects will be tailored to the student’s level. Graduate
students will be expected to do more comprehensive and fundamental projects.
Undergraduates can use models as “black boxes” without exploring their inner workings.
Problem sets may have two levels of questions (grad vs. undergrad).
c) A minimum one course background in thermodynamics and/or physical chemistry is
required. Exposure to environmental chemistry, environmental science, numerical
methods, computer programming, and/or environmental engineering is helpful, but not
required.
5. Course Goals
a) The primary goal of the class is to strengthen student knowledge of the fundamental and
applied issues in atmospheric chemistry, through a combination of lectures, problem sets,
and projects.
b) By the end of this class, students should be able to follow (and place in scientific context)
current research in atmospheric chemistry and physics – including field, laboratory, and
computational research.
c) Some topics of atmospheric chemistry will be covered at the survey & problem set level,
including global circulation, global biogeochemical cycles, synoptic meteorology,
vertical transport of pollutants, sampling techniques for gas phase compounds, aqueous
phase reactions, deposition, gas-particle partitioning, photolysis, and atmospheric
residence time.
d) The class will focus in depth on one aspect of tropospheric chemistry: the HOx cycle and
photochemical smog and ozone formation. Students will construct and run a 0-D model
of this system.
e) Some topics of atmospheric aerosols at the survey & problem set level, including aerosol
size distributions, dynamics of aerosol particles, dynamics of aerosol populations,
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radiative transfer involving aerosols, cloud formation, and sampling techniques for
aerosols.
f) The class will focus in depth on one aspect of atmospheric aerosols: the thermodynamics
of gas-particle partitioning – by using computational models of this process.
g) Dispersion modeling and Chemical Transport Modeling by Eulerian and Langrangian
methods will be discussed.
h) In addition to the two in-depth assignments, students will complete two mini projects on
topics of their choice.
i) In-depth assignments and mini-projects will be tailored to the students level. Graduate
students will be expected to do more comprehensive and fundamental projects.
Undergraduates can use models as “black boxes” without exploring their inner workings.
6. Course Outline
Date
Period
Monday, Jan-16
Topic
H.W. Due
======= University Holiday =========
1
Wednesday, Jan-18
Atmospheric Structure and
Constituents
2
Monday, Jan-23
Atmospheric Structure and
Constituents
3
Wednesday, Jan-25
General Circulation /
Atmospheric Residence Time
4
Monday, Jan-30
Biogeochemical Cycles
5
Wednesday, Feb-1
Vertical Stability and Dispersion
6
Monday, Feb-6
Stratospheric Chemistry I:
History and Chapmann Cycle
7
Wednesday, Feb-8
Statospheric Chemistry II: Nonpolar and polar ozone depletion
8
Monday, Feb-13
Tropospheric Chemistry I: OH
and CO
9
Wednesday, Feb-15
Tropospheric Chemistry II: HOx
Cycle
10
Monday, Feb-20
Tropospheric Chemistry III:
Oxidation of HC’s
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11
Wednesday, Feb-22
Tropospheric Chemistry IV:
Ozone Control, NOx, VOCs
12
Monday, Feb-27
Measurement Techniques for the
Gas Phase
13
Wednesday, Mar-1
S(IV) to S(VI) and Acid Rain
14
Monday, Mar-6
Henry’s Law Partitioning and
Aqueous Oxidation
15
Wednesday, Mar-8
Student Presentation 1
March 13-17 Spring Break
16
Monday, Mar-20
Intro to Aerosols
17
Wednesday, Mar-22
Aerosol Size Distributions and
Typical Tropospheric
Concentrations
18
Monday, Mar-27
Motion of Aerosol Particles
19
Wednesday, Mar-29
Dynamics of Aerosol Populations
20
Monday, Apr-3
Aerosol Thermodynamics Fundamentals
21
Wednesday, Apr-5
Aerosol Thermodyanmics –
Computations and Applications
22
Monday, Apr-10
Aerosol Cloud Interactions
23
Wednesday, Apr-12
Dry and Wet Deposition
24
Monday, Apr-17
Climate – Chemistry – Aerosol
Feedbacks – One Lecture
Overview
25
Wednesday, Apr-19
Dispersion Models
26
Monday, Apr-24
3D Modeling: Solving
Advection/Diffusion
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27
Wednesday, Apr-26
3D Modeling:
Chemistry
28
Monday, May-1
Modeling: Aerosol Size and
Composition Treatments
29
Wednesday, May-3
Student Presentations, Project 2
May 8-12 Final Examination Week
7.
Homework
There will be weekly homework assignments due on Friday, with breaks for the mini
projects.
8.
Quizzes
There will be 2-3 in class quizzes.
Exams
No exams. Projects will serve in leiu of exams.
9.
10. Grading
Letter grades will be assigned based on:
Homework:
20%
Mini projects:
25%
Quizzes:
15%
Project/presentation 1
15%
Project/presentation 2
25%
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ISIS Description
The primary goal of the class is to strengthen student knowledge of the fundamental and applied
issues in atmospheric chemistry, through a combination of lectures, problem sets, and projects.
Gas-phase and aerosol-phase problems are considered on urban, regional and global scales. The
course is targeted to both undergraduates and graduate students, and counts toward the Chemical
and Biochemical Engineering EFA. In-depth assignments and mini-projects will be tailored to
the student’s level. Graduate students will be expected to do more comprehensive and
fundamental projects. Undergraduates can use models as “black boxes” without exploring their
inner workings. Problem sets may have two levels of questions (grad vs. undergrad).
The syllabus is still under development and student requests and inquires are welcome. Get latest
syllabus at
http://www.engineering.uiowa.edu/~cs_proj/classes.htm
Topics to be covered include global circulation, global biogeochemical cycles, synoptic
meteorology, vertical transport of pollutants, sampling techniques for gas phase compounds,
aqueous phase reactions, deposition, gas-particle partitioning, photolysis, atmospheric residence
time, aerosol size distributions, dynamics of aerosol particles, dynamics of aerosol populations,
radiative transfer involving aerosols, cloud formation, and sampling techniques for aerosols.
A minimum one course background in thermodynamics and/or physical chemistry is required.
Exposure to environmental chemistry, environmental science, numerical methods, computer
programming, and/or environmental engineering is helpful, but not required.
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