Measurements of the size dependence of the concentration of non-volatile material in fog droplets

Abstract

Measurements of the size dependence of the mass concentration of nonvolatile material dissolved and suspended in fog droplets were obtained with three complementary approaches, covering a size range from c. 1—50 μm diameter: a counterflow virtual impactor, an eight-stage aerosol impactor, and a two-stage fogwater impactor. Concentrations were observed to decrease with size over the entire range, contrary to expectations of increasing concentrations at larger sizes. It is possible that the larger droplets had solute concentrations that increased with increasing size, but that the increase was too weak for the measurements to resolve. Future studies should consider the hypothesis that the droplets were coated with a surface-active substance that hindered their uptake of water.