| Download | - View author's version: Highly light-absorbing particle emissions from low-sulfur marine fuels (PDF, 4.9 MiB)
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| DOI | Resolve DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41612-026-01369-w |
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| Author | Search for: Kokkola, Tuukka; Search for: Sipkens, Timothy A.1ORCID identifier: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1719-7105; Search for: Paul, Andreas; Search for: Shukla, Deeksha; Search for: Ihalainen, Mika; Search for: Das, Anusmita; Search for: Scott, Jason1; Search for: Passig, Johannes; Search for: Kalamašņikovs, Aleksandrs; Search for: Etzien, Uwe; Search for: Fang, Zheng; Search for: Mikkonen, Santtu; Search for: Hartikainen, Anni; Search for: Luostari, Viljami; Search for: Mukherjee, Arya; Search for: Czech, Hendryk; Search for: Sklorz, Martin; Search for: Buchholz, Bert; Search for: Streibel, Thorsten; Search for: Hohaus, Thorsten; Search for: Rudich, Yinon; Search for: Øvrevik, Johan; Search for: Zimmermann, Ralf; Search for: Corbin, Joel C.1ORCID identifier: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2584-9137; Search for: Sippula, Olli |
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| Affiliation | - National Research Council Canada. Metrology Research Centre
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| Funder | Search for: European Union Horizon 2020 project ULTRHAS; Search for: Research Council of Finland “Black and Brown Carbon in the Atmosphere and the Cryosphere”; Search for: Transport Canada; Search for: Research Council of Finland “Competitive funding to strengthen university research profiles [PROFI] for the University of Eastern Finland”; Search for: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) - SFB 1477 “Light-Matter Interactions at Interfaces” |
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| Format | Text, Article |
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| Abstract | Particulate matter (PM) from marine traffic interacts with solar radiation and clouds, ultimately influencing Earth’s radiative balance. Ships operated with conventional fossil fuel oils emit light-absorbing carbonaceous PM that offsets aerosol-driven cooling and can even exert a net positive radiative forcing, i.e. warming effect. Radiative properties of PM are possibly further altered by atmospheric aging processes, the effects of which are not fully understood. We present black carbon (BC) emission factors (EF) and optical properties of fresh and photochemically aged particle emissions from a marine engine, operated using low-sulfur heavy fuel oil (LS-HFO) and marine gas oil (MGO), complying with recent maritime sulfur regulations by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The fresh particle emissions comprised mostly BC, with average BC EFs of 144 and 43.2 mg/kWh for LS-HFO and MGO, respectively. Light absorption was mostly attributed to BC in particles from both fuels, with absorption Ångström exponent (AAE, 370 to 880 nm) values 0.9–1.0 (interquartile range), and 870 nm single scattering albedo (SSA) values 0.15–0.24 during the full cycles. Fresh LS-HFO emissions exhibited lower SSA values than those of high-sulfur fuels reported in literature, primarily associated with reduced sulfate emissions. Photochemical aging led to an absorption enhancement (Eabs) of 1.2–1.5 and an increase in SSA relative to fresh emissions, although SSA remained below 0.5, and the estimated direct radiative forcing effect stayed positive. Our results show that sulfur-compliant marine fuels can emit highly absorbing particles with an atmospheric warming potential, which is mostly maintained even after photochemical aging. |
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| Publication date | 2026-03-18 |
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| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC |
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| Language | English |
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| In press | Yes |
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| Export citation | Export as RIS |
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| Report a correction | Report a correction (opens in a new tab) |
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| Record identifier | 809706d9-b5b3-407f-90f5-f1929a36200d |
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| Record created | 2026-03-24 |
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| Record modified | 2026-04-21 |
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