Black carbon

Black carbon is in the air and circulates the globe.

Black carbon travels along wind currents from Asian cities and accumulates over the Tibetan Plateau and Himalayan foothills.

Chemically, black carbon (BC) is a component of fine particulate matter (PM ≤ 2.5 μm in aerodynamic diameter). Black carbon consists of pure carbon in several linked forms. It is formed through the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biofuel, and biomass, and is one of the main types of particle^[1] in both anthropogenic and naturally occurring soot.^[2] Black carbon causes human morbidity and premature mortality.^[2] Because of these human health impacts, many countries have worked to reduce their emissions, making it an easy pollutant to abate in anthropogenic sources.^[3]

In climatology, black carbon is a climate forcing agent contributing to global warming. Black carbon warms the Earth by absorbing sunlight and heating the atmosphere and by reducing albedo when deposited on snow and ice (direct effects) and indirectly by interaction with clouds, with the total forcing of 1.1 W/m².^[4] Black carbon stays in the atmosphere for only several days to weeks, whereas potent greenhouse gases have longer lifecycles, for example, carbon dioxide (CO₂) has an atmospheric lifetime of more than 100 years.^[5] The IPCC and other climate researchers have posited that reducing black carbon is one of the easiest ways to slow down short term global warming.^[6]^[7]

The term black carbon is also used in soil sciences and geology, referring either to deposited atmospheric black carbon or to directly incorporated black carbon from vegetation fires.^[8]^[9] Especially in the tropics, black carbon in soils significantly contributes to fertility as it is able to absorb important plant nutrients.^[10]

^ "Black Carbon: A Deadly Air Pollutant". NoMorePlanet.com. 2020-09-13. Archived from the original on 2021-03-04. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
^ ^a ^b Anenberg, Susan C.; Schwartz, Joel; Shindell, Drew; Amann, Markus; Faluvegi, Greg; Klimont, Zbigniew; Janssens-Maenhout, Greet; Pozzoli, Luca; Van Dingenen, Rita; Vignati, Elisabetta; Emberson, Lisa; Muller, Nicholas Z.; West, J. Jason; Williams, Martin; Demkine, Volodymyr; Hicks, W. Kevin; Kuylenstierna, Johan; Raes, Frank; Ramanathan, Veerabhadran (June 2012). "Global Air Quality and Health Co-benefits of Mitigating Near-Term Climate Change through Methane and Black Carbon Emission Controls". Environmental Health Perspectives. 120 (6): 831–839. doi:10.1289/ehp.1104301. eISSN 1552-9924. ISSN 0091-6765. PMC 3385429. PMID 22418651.
^ Cite error: The named reference ReferenceB was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Bond; et al. (2013). "Bounding the role of black carbon in the climate system: A scientific assessment". J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 118 (11): 5380–5552. Bibcode:2013JGRD..118.5380B. doi:10.1002/jgrd.50171.
^ Ramanathan, V.; Carmichael, G. (April 2008). "Global and regional climate changes due to black carbon". Nature Geoscience. 1 (4): 221–227. Bibcode:2008NatGe...1..221R. doi:10.1038/ngeo156.
^ Cite error: The named reference nytimes.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Masiello, C.A. (2004). "New directions in black carbon organic geochemistry". Marine Chemistry. 92 (1–4): 201–213. Bibcode:2004MarCh..92..201M. doi:10.1016/j.marchem.2004.06.043.
^ Schmidt, M.W.I.; Noack, A.G. (2000). "Black carbon in soils and sediments: Analysis, distribution, implications and current challenges". Global Biogeochemical Cycles. 14 (3): 777–793. Bibcode:2000GBioC..14..777S. doi:10.1029/1999gb001208.
^ Glaser, Bruno (28 February 2007). "Prehistorically modified soils of central Amazonia: a model for sustainable agriculture in the twenty-first century". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 362 (1478): 187–196. doi:10.1098/rstb.2006.1978. PMC 2311424. PMID 17255028.

[1] "Black Carbon: A Deadly Air Pollutant". NoMorePlanet.com. 2020-09-13. Archived from the original on 2021-03-04. Retrieved 2020-11-01.

[Anenberg,_''et_al.'',_2012-2] Anenberg, Susan C.; Schwartz, Joel; Shindell, Drew; Amann, Markus; Faluvegi, Greg; Klimont, Zbigniew; Janssens-Maenhout, Greet; Pozzoli, Luca; Van Dingenen, Rita; Vignati, Elisabetta; Emberson, Lisa; Muller, Nicholas Z.; West, J. Jason; Williams, Martin; Demkine, Volodymyr; Hicks, W. Kevin; Kuylenstierna, Johan; Raes, Frank; Ramanathan, Veerabhadran (June 2012). "Global Air Quality and Health Co-benefits of Mitigating Near-Term Climate Change through Methane and Black Carbon Emission Controls". Environmental Health Perspectives. 120 (6): 831–839. doi:10.1289/ehp.1104301. eISSN 1552-9924. ISSN 0091-6765. PMC 3385429. PMID 22418651.

[ReferenceB-3] Cite error: The named reference ReferenceB was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[4] Bond; et al. (2013). "Bounding the role of black carbon in the climate system: A scientific assessment". J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 118 (11): 5380–5552. Bibcode:2013JGRD..118.5380B. doi:10.1002/jgrd.50171.

[Ramanathan_&_Carmichael_2008-5] Ramanathan, V.; Carmichael, G. (April 2008). "Global and regional climate changes due to black carbon". Nature Geoscience. 1 (4): 221–227. Bibcode:2008NatGe...1..221R. doi:10.1038/ngeo156.

[nytimes.com-6] Cite error: The named reference nytimes.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:0-7] Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[8] Masiello, C.A. (2004). "New directions in black carbon organic geochemistry". Marine Chemistry. 92 (1–4): 201–213. Bibcode:2004MarCh..92..201M. doi:10.1016/j.marchem.2004.06.043.

[9] Schmidt, M.W.I.; Noack, A.G. (2000). "Black carbon in soils and sediments: Analysis, distribution, implications and current challenges". Global Biogeochemical Cycles. 14 (3): 777–793. Bibcode:2000GBioC..14..777S. doi:10.1029/1999gb001208.

[10] Glaser, Bruno (28 February 2007). "Prehistorically modified soils of central Amazonia: a model for sustainable agriculture in the twenty-first century". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 362 (1478): 187–196. doi:10.1098/rstb.2006.1978. PMC 2311424. PMID 17255028.

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