Vertical Profiling of Aerosol Physicochemical Properties With a New Airborne Aerosol Sampling System for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Tethered Balloons

作者：Shaowen Zhu, Nan Ma, Pengfei Yu, Linhong Xie, Juan Hong, Nan Lü, Zhixuan Bai, Zhaoze Deng, Liang Ran, Yunfei Wu, Jianchun Bian, Qiyuan Wang, Jiangchuan Tao, Yaqing Zhou, Qiaoqiao Wang, Hang Su, Yafang Cheng · 发表于：Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1029/2024jd043148 · 被引用次数：3 · 研究领域：Atmospheric aerosols and clouds、Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols、Air Quality and Health Impacts

Abstract Vertical profiling of aerosol physicochemical properties, such as chemical composition, aerosol hygroscopicity, mixing state, is crucial for understanding their interactions with boundary layer evolution and their impacts on atmospheric environment. Traditional in situ vertical observations of those properties mainly rely on aircraft platforms, which are costly, subject to numerous constraints, and are unsuitable for near‐ground (<500 m) measurements. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and tethered balloons (TBs) are ideal platforms for observations within the atmospheric boundary layer but can only carry portable instruments due to payload limitations. In this study, a novel method for vertical profiling of aerosol physicochemical properties within 1 km is designed utilizing a self‐developed lightweight airborne aerosol sampling system (AS2) integrated onto UAVs or TBs platforms. AS2 collects and preserves atmospheric aerosol samples in aerosol form, enabling subsequent analysis by online instruments at the ground station. During a field campaign in Golmud, Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau, in 2021, the AS2 was applied alongside a Single Particle Soot Photometer and a Humidified Tandem Differential Mobility Analyzer to obtain vertical profiles of the refractory black carbon (rBC) mixing state and aerosol hygroscopicity. Results show that both the rBC mixing state and aerosol hygroscopicity exhibit significant vertical and diurnal variations. Our method provides an easy‐to‐impl...