Atmospheric Measurement Techniques Discussions www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net 1867-8610 2 5 2009 10.5194/amtd-2-2781-2009 http://www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net/2/2781/2009/ http://www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net/2/2781/2009/amtd-2-2781-2009.html http://www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net/2/2781/2009/amtd-2-2781-2009.pdf 2781 2807 2009-10-30 Elemental analysis of aerosol organic nitrates with electron ionization high-resolution mass spectrometry A. W. Rollins J. L. Fry J. F. Hunter J. H. Kroll D. R. Worsnop S. W. Singaram R. C. Cohen cohen@cchem.berkeley.edu Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94721, USA Chemistry Department, Reed College, Portland, OR 97202, USA Aerosol and Cloud Chemistry, Aerodyne Research Inc., Billerica, MA 01821, USA Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94721, USA now at: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA Four hydroxynitrates (R(OH)R'ONO₂) representative of atmospheric volatile organic compound (VOC) oxidation products were synthesized, nebulized and sampled into an Aerodyne High Resolution Time of Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (HR-ToF-AMS). The resulting mass spectrum was used to evaluate calibration factors for elemental analysis of organic nitrates by AMS, and to determine the distribution of nitrogen in the detected fragments in a search for an AMS signature of organic nitrates. 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