Organosulfate formation during the uptake of pinonaldehyde on acidic sulfate aerosols

Organosulfates are observed in studies of pinonaldehyde reactions with acidic sulfate aerosols using aerosol mass spectrometry, during which a significant fraction of the pinonaldehyde reaction products were found to consist of organosulfate compounds that account for 6–51% of the initial SO4= mass. Resultant aerosol mass spectra were consistent with proposed sulfate ester mechanisms, which likely form stable products. The existence of organosulfates was also confirmed in studies of the reaction system in bulk solution. The formation of organosulfates suggests that conventional inorganic SO4= chemical analysis may underestimate total SO4= mass in ambient aerosols.