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Atmosphere
Special Issues
Chemical Composition, Source and Formation Mechanism of Atmospheric Pollutants
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Chemical Composition, Source and Formation Mechanism of Atmospheric Pollutants

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Air Quality".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 581

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Xiao Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Ecology and Environment, Zhengzhou University, No.100 Science Avenue, Zhengzhou 450001, China
Interests: fine particulate matter; brown carbon; secondary organic aerosol; carbonaceous aerosols
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Shijie Yu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Engineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Interests: volatile organic compounds; observation-based model; community multiscale air quality; source apportionment
Dr. Zhe Dong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Dezhou University, No. 566 Daxue Road, Dezhou 253023, China
Interests: carbonaceous aerosols; secondary organic aerosol; fine particulate matter; source apportionment

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The accurate measurement, in-depth chemical characterization, and precise source identification of atmospheric pollutants are fundamental to understanding air pollution mechanisms, formulating effective control strategies, and assessing environmental and health impacts. However, these core aspects continue to face significant challenges in global air quality research. The increasing complexity of emission sources—such as mixed industrial, traffic, agricultural, and secondary sources—combined with dynamic pollutant transformations, makes it difficult for conventional measurement techniques to capture the full spatiotemporal variability of pollutants. In addition, emerging pollutants such as oxygenated volatile organic compounds and halogenated compounds lack standardized characterization methods, while source apportionment approaches often fall short in complex regional environments—such as transboundary pollution and multi-pollutant interactions—undermining the accuracy of pollution control decisions.

This Special Issue invites high-quality contributions under the theme "Chemical Composition, Source and Formation Mechanism of Atmospheric Pollutants," aiming to foster academic exchange and technological innovation in this critical field. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and technical notes related to, but not limited to, the following topics:

  1. Development and validation of novel techniques for measuring atmospheric pollutants, including online/offline monitoring of gaseous pollutants and particulate matter, as well as multi-platform integrated observation systems.
  2. Chemical characterization of atmospheric pollutants, such as compositional analysis of PM2.5 (e.g., organic carbon/elemental carbon, water-soluble ions, heavy metals, and secondary organic aerosols), structural identification of key gaseous pollutants, and variations in chemical composition under diverse meteorological and emission conditions.
  3. Innovation and application of source identification methodologies, including the development and updating of dynamic regional emission inventories, optimization of source apportionment models, and quantitative assessment of contributions from various sources such as industrial emissions, vehicle exhaust, biomass burning, and secondary aerosol formation.
  4. Integrated studies combining measurement, chemical characterization, and source identification in specific scenarios—for example, investigations of pollution sources and chemical properties in industrial zones, cross-boundary transport pathways, or regions affected by seasonal emissions.

Dr. Xiao Li
Dr. Shijie Yu
Dr. Zhe Dong
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • particulate matter
  • ozone
  • secondary organic aerosols
  • water-soluble ions
  • volatile organic compounds
  • oxygenated volatile organic compounds
  • halogenated compounds
  • chemical characterization
  • source identification
  • source apportionment

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

25 pages, 2343 KB  
Article
VOC Characteristics, Sources, and O3 Precursor Sensitivity During Severe Summer Photochemical Pollution in a Central China Megacity
by Hui Wang, Chaofang Xue, Beibei Wang, Jiahua Guo, Zongwei Wang, Hongyu Liu, Jiakun Bai, Zhaolin Yang, Shenao Wang and Shijie Yu
Atmosphere 2026, 17(5), 477; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos17050477 - 7 May 2026
Viewed by 264
Abstract
Despite substantial reductions in precursor emissions, persistent summer ozone (O3) pollution remains a critical environmental challenge in the North China Plain. This study integrated O3 and volatile organic compound (VOC) data from the summers of 2014–2020 with an observation-based box [...] Read more.
Despite substantial reductions in precursor emissions, persistent summer ozone (O3) pollution remains a critical environmental challenge in the North China Plain. This study integrated O3 and volatile organic compound (VOC) data from the summers of 2014–2020 with an observation-based box model (OBM) to analyze O3 pollution trends, VOC composition, sources, and sensitivity in Zhengzhou. The results indicated a continuous intensification of summer O3 pollution, a progressive annual increase in polluted days, and an average annual concentration increase of 6.72 μg m−3 yr−1. Further, the average VOC concentration on polluted days was 11.7% higher than that on non-polluted days, with alkanes dominating the component distribution, followed by aromatic hydrocarbons, alkenes, and alkynes. Subsequently, a source-apportionment model (positive matrix factorization) was used to identify six VOC sources: motor vehicle emissions (28.4%), industrial emissions (23.2%), solvent use (16.0%), liquefied petroleum gas/natural gas use (15.8%), fuel combustion (11.4%), and biological sources (5.4%). The photochemical age method corrected VOC loss during atmospheric transport, revealing that the traditional O3-formation potential (OFP) method underestimated the contributions of alkenes and aromatic hydrocarbons, with isoprene, m/p-xylene, and ethylene as key species. Furthermore, multi-scenario simulations showed that solely reducing nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions caused an O3 concentration rebound, while a 4:1 VOC to NOx reduction ratio provided optimal control. By identifying the causal drivers of O3 pollution in Zhengzhou, this study provides a scientific basis for designing precise emission-reduction strategies applicable to the North China Plain and analogous urban regions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical Composition, Source and Formation Mechanism of Atmospheric Pollutants)
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