ESSL LAR

Alex Guenther

 

Senior Scientist
TIIMES - ACD
BEACHON

 

Contact Information:
PO Box 3000, Boulder, CO 80307-3000
Office: FL0-3544
Telephone: 303-497-1447
Email: guenther@ucar.edu
Home Page

Alex Guenther
 

Project Summary:


BEACHON-CHATS

BEACHON-CHATS: A classic micrometeorology experiment augmented to evaluate novel sensing approaches for couples BHA science. (TIIMES-ACD-WOL-MMM-Duke University Collaboration)

FY07 TIIMES research focused on understanding and quantifying biosphere-atmosphere exchange of trace gases and aerosols. This included field studies (Eucalyptus Forest Aerosols and Precursors, EUCAP in Australia and CHATS in California), laboratory studies (FL0 greenhouse and chamber facilities), and modeling studies. Additional efforts were focused on the development of the BEACHON research project.

 

CHATS - Alex Guenther

Click on picture to view the entire figure.

 

BEACHON-CHATS: It's Green!
(photo credit: Don Lenschow))

This research resulted in the discovery of a new class of compounds that may be important biogenic emissions into the atmosphere. The compounds are called salates and serve as sunscreen protection in some plants. They were previously thought to be non-volatile. In addition, it was demonstrated that current atmospheric modeling approaches greatly underestimate OH concentrations over tropical forests. This has major implications for atmospheric chemistry and could explain why models overestimate ambient biogenic VOC concentrations when using our recommended biogenic emission rates. Finally, these studies show that U.S. air quality will likely degrade in the future due to increases in wildfire and biogenic emissions and from pollutant transport from other countries.

FY08 TIIMES research will be focused on initiating the BEACHON project. This will include field, laboratory and modeling studies.
 

Community Service:

  • Advisor on Graduate Research: Kolby Jardine, , SUNY Stonybrook, Stonybrook, NY USA
  • Advisor on Graduate Research: Monica Madronich, , U. Colorado, Boulder, CO USA
  • Advisor on Graduate Research: Tiffany Duhl, , U. Colorado, Boulder, CO USA
  • Co-Chair - Global Emissions Inventory Activity, International Geosphere Biosphere Programme (IGBP) - Analysis, Integration and Modeling of the Earth System (AIMES)
  • Editor - Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
  • Editorial Advisory Board - Atmospheric Environment
  • Thesis Committee: Jack Chen, , PhD, Washington State University, Pullman, WA USA
  • Thesis Committee: Kolby Jardine, , PhD, SUNY Stonybrook, Stonybrook, NY USA
  • Thesis Committee: Monica Madronich, , PhD, U. Colorado, Boulder, CO USA
  • Thesis Committee: Tanarit Sakulyanontvittaya, , PhD, U. Colorado, Boulder, CO USA
  • Thesis Committee: Tiffany Duhl, , Masters, U. Colorado, Boulder, CO USA
 

Presentations:

  • REFLECTIONS: What do we need to know about biogenic VOC emissions and their role in the earth system?, Ventura USA, February 2007
  • Biogenic emissions from leaf to global scales, Big Sky USA, August 2007
  • Biogenic Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Terrestrial Ecosystems, Oleron FRA, September 2007
  • Measuring and Modeling natural emissions, Oleron FRA, September 2007
 

TIIMES External Collaborators:

Jonathan Adams, Rutgers University
Paolo Artaxo, University of São Paulo
Roni Avissar, Duke University
Jainhaui Bai, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Brad Baker, Sacramento State
Kelley Barsanti, Oregon Health & Science University
Paul Brooks, University of Arizona
Antonio Busalacchi, University of Maryland - Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center (ESSIC)
Robert Dickinson, Georgia Institute of Technology
Rong Fu, Georgia Institute of Technology
Chris Geron, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Allen Goldstein, University of California, Berkeley
Detlev Helmig, University of Colorado
C.N. Hewitt, Univeristy of Lancaster
Peter Hildebrand, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) - NASA
Paul Houser, George Mason University - CREW
Daniel Jacob, Harvard University
Kolby Jardine, Stony Brook University
Juergen Kesselmeier, Max Planck Institute
Brian Lamb, Washington State University
Brian Lamb, Washington State University
Luciene Lara, University of São Paulo
Cliff Mass, University of Washington
Jana Milford, University of Colorado
Russ Monson, University of Colorado
Dev Niyogi, Purdue University
Zaitao Pan, St. Louis University
Josep Penuelas, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) - Center for Ecological Research and Forestry (CREAF)
Christa Peters-Lidard, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) - NASA
David Randall, Colorado State University
Rei Rasmussen, Oregon Graduate Center
Janne Rinne, University of Helsinki
Steve Running, University of Montana-Missoula
Mary Scholes, University Witwatersrand
Dominique Serca, Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS)
Paul Shepson, Purdue University
Mark Sutton, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
Birgit Wehner, Institute for Tropospheric Research
Daqing Yang, University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Xubin Zeng, University of Arizona
 

Publications:

Harley, P., J. Greenberg, Ulo. Niinemets, A. Guenther, 2007: Environmental controls over methanol emission from leaves. Biogeosciences Discuss., 4, 2593-2640.

Karl, T., A. Guenther, R. J. Yokelson, J. Greenberg, M. Potosnak, D. R. Blake, P. Artaxo, 2007: The tropical forest and fire emissions experiment: Emission, chemistry, and transport of biogenic volatile organic compounds in the lower atmosphere over Amazonia. J. Geophys. Res., American Geophysical Union, 112, D18302, doi: 10.1029/2007JD008539.

Ortega, J., D. Helmig, A. Guenther, P. Harley, S. Pressley, C. Vogel, 2007: Flux estimates and OH reaction potential of reactive biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) from a mixed northern hardwood forest. Atmos. Environ., Elsevier Ltd., 41, 5479-5495, doi: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2006.12.033.

Karl, T. G., T. J. Christian, R. J. Yokelson, P. Artaxo, W. M. Hao, A. Guenther, 2007: The tropical forest and fire emissions experiment: method evaluation of volatile organic compound emissions measured by PTR-MS, FTIR, and GC from tropical biomass burning. Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., 7, 8755-8793.

Matsunaga, S. N., A. B. Guenther, Y. Izawa, C. Wiedinmyer, J. P. Greenberg, K. Kawamura, 2007: Importance of wet precipitation as a removal and transport process for atmospheric water soluble carbonyls. Atmos. Environ., 41, 790-796, doi: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2006.08.054.

Shim, C., Y. Wang, H. B. Singh, D. R. Blake, A. B. Guenther, 2007: Source characteristics of oxygenated volatile organic compounds and hydrogen cyanide. J. Geophys. Res., 112, D10305, doi: 10.1029/2006JD007543.

Yokelson, R. J., T. Karl, P. Artaxo, D. R. Blake, T. J. Christian, D. W. T. Griffith, A. Guenther, W. M. Hao, 2007: The Tropical Forest and fire emissions experiment: overview and airborne fire emission factor measurements. Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., 7, 6903-6958.

Donkelaar, A. V., R. V. Martin, R. J. Park, C. L. Heald, T.-M. Fu, H. Liao, A. Guenther, 2007: Model evidence for a significant source of secondary organic aerosol from isoprene. Atmos. Environ., 41, 1267-1274, doi: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2006.09.051.

Stroud, C. A., A. Nenes, J. L. Jimenez, P. F. DeCarlo, J. A. Huffman, R. Bruintjes, E. Nemitz, A. E. Delia, D. W. Toohey, A. B. Guenther, S. Nandi, 2007: Cloud activating properties of aerosol observed during CELTIC. J. Atmos. Sci., American Meteorological Society, 64 (2), 441-459, doi: 10.1175/JAS3843.1.

Helmig, D., J. Ortega, T. Duhl, D. Tanner, A. Guenther, P. Harley, C. Wiedinmyer, J. Milford, T. Sakulyanontvittaya, 2007: Sesquiterpene emissions from Pine Trees - Identifications, Emission Rates and Flux Estimates for the Contiguous United States. Environ. Sci. Technol., 41, 1545 -1553, doi: 10.1021/es0618907.