Probing the Evaporation Dynamics of Mixed SOA/Squalane Particles Using Size-Resolved Composition and Single-Particle Measurements

An analysis of the formation and evaporation of mixed-particles containing squalane (a surrogate for hydrophobic primary organic aerosol, POA) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) is presented. In these experiments, one material (D₆₂-squalane or SOA from α-pinene + O₃) was prepared first to serve as surface area for condensation of the other, forming the mixed-particles. The mixed-particles were then subjected to a heating-ramp from 22 to 44 °C. We were able to determine that (1) almost all of the SOA mass is comprised of material less volatile than D₆₂-squalane; (2) AMS collection efficiency in these mixed-particle systems can be parametrized as a function of the relative mass fraction of the components; and (3) the vast majority of D₆₂-squalane is able to evaporate from the mixed particles, and does so on the same time scale regardless of the order of preparation. We also performed two-population mixing experiments to directly test whether D₆₂-squalane and SOA from α-pinene + O₃ form a single solution or two separate phases. We find that these two OA types are immiscible, which informs our inference of the morphology of the mixed-particles. If the morphology is core–shell and dictated by the order of preparation, these data indicate that squalane is able to diffuse relatively quickly through the SOA shell, implying that there are no major diffusion limitations