Field Observations of Submicron Particles at the California-Mexico Border

US Border Crossing regions frequently suffer from reduced air quality due to the increased transportation between the United States and Mexico. Gasoline and diesel vehicles produce a significant amount of submicron particles, which not only impact the local environment and climate, but also pose serious health risks to the residential population. In this demonstration, we will present a detailed description of the submicron aerosols in the region observed during the Cal-Mex 2010 field campaign. The Texas A&M team deployed several instruments to observe an extensive analysis of the ambient aerosols including a Hygroscopic-Volatility Tandem Differential Mobility Analyzer (HV-TDMA), Aerosol Particle Mass analyzer (APM), Condensation Particle Counter (CPC), Cavity Ring-Down Spectrometer (CRDS), and nephelometer to determine the hygroscopicity, volatility, particle mass, size, surface area, and volume, effective density, and the light extinction, scattering, and absorption coefficients. Emphasis will be placed on the characteristics of black carbon containing particles, which are produced from incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, with the expectation of obtaining a greater understanding of their composition and concentration.