Unraveling the absorption properties and driving mechanisms of atmospheric brown carbon in coastal air masses.

Light-absorbing organic aerosols, optically defined as brown carbon (BrC), strongly absorb short visible solar wavelengths, significantly influencing regional climate and atmospheric environments. However, the relationship between the light-absorption properties of BrC and the chemical characteristics and sources of organic aerosols (OA) remains poorly understood. This study systematically investigated the light-absorption properties of BrC and their driving mechanisms in the Zhoushan coastal region, based on field observations, positive matrix factorization (PMF) source apportionment, and a random forest (RF) model. The results demonstrate that the light absorption of BrC is significantly influenced by air mass origins, OA factors, and chemical composition. Northern polluted air masses, characterized by high concentrations of particulate matter and OA, substantially enhanced the light absorption of BrC. OA with a high N/C ratio was found to strengthen BrC light absorption, while the O/C ratio exhibited a nonlinear relationship with BrC absorption, initially enhancing and subsequently weakening it, reflecting the dual role of atmospheric oxidation processes. Vessel-emission-related OA contributed the most to BrC light absorption, whereas highly oxidized OA likely reduced its absorption capacity due to photobleaching effects. The RF model significantly improved the prediction accuracy of BrC light absorption (R increased from 0.60 to 0.69) compared to traditional multiple linear regression (MLR) methods, effectively capturing the complex nonlinear relationships between BrC absorption and multiple variables. These findings reveal the importance of emissions, transportation, and atmospheric oxidation in the formation and evolution of BrC, providing new insights for optimizing air quality management in coastal areas.