[Influence of fog processes on characteristics of individual particles in the urban atmosphere of Beijing].

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of fog processes on the physical and chemical properties of aerosol particles in an urban atmosphere. Atmospheric particles were collected in the urban atmosphere of Beijing during fog and non-fog episodes. The morphology, size and elemental composition of individual particles were characterized using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDX). EDX analysis showed that elongated particles were composed of Ca-K-S or Ca-S, and most sub-round particles contained sulfur. Large amounts of elongated and sub-round particles were identified in the samples collected during fog episodes, and they were rarely detected in the samples collected during non-fog episodes. This suggests that the high relative humidity in the fogs facilitated the formation of elongated and sub-round particles. Number concentrations of particles larger than 0.2 microm were about 5 to 8 times higher during the fog episodes. In addition, a new mode around 0.4 microm appeared in number size distribution of particles during the fog episodes. These results indicate that heterogeneous reactions in the fogs could greatly change the chemical and physical properties of particles.