Characterization of Aerosol Properties from the Burning Emissions of Typical Residential Fuels on the Tibetan Plateau

The Tibet Autonomous Region in China is a unique place with high altitude and special Tibetan culture. The residents have different living habits and domestic fuels from those in other parts of China, however, knowledge on the emission characteristics of local residential fuels remain poorly understood until now. In this study, nine popular residential fuels in the Tibet are burned in situ to study the aerosol chemical compositions, mass spectral signatures, and emission characteristics from their burning emissions. Overall, emissions of particulate and gaseous pollutants depend strongly on the burning conditions, in addition to the fuel constituents themselves. Burning the biofuels of yak dung, WeiSang mixture fuels, and two powdery Tibetan incenses with relatively low combustion efficiencies can emit large amounts of CO and aerosols, especially organic aerosols (>90%) with large diameters. In contrast, burning of wood, coal, ghee lamp, stick-like Tibetan incense, and diesel can release abundant CO2 but fewer aerosols from their flaming combustion. A comprehensive database consisting of the high-resolution mass spectra of organics and emission factors of multiple chemical components are established. Distinctly different mass spectral signatures are found among the different fuels, in particularly those unique Tibetan biofuels. All these findings have significant implications for the identification of aerosol sources, compilation of pollutant emission inventories, and assessment of potential environment effects in this remote region.