Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) are important precursors for secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation (Hallquist et al., 2009). In addition reactive BVOCs play a crucial role in local tropospheric ozone production (Atkinson, 2000). According to the present scientific understanding vegetation is recognized as a major VOC emission source rather than a deposition sink. Our recent observations however demonstrate that an uptake of terpene compounds to mountain grassland can be significant - at least under certain atmospheric conditions. After a severe hailstorm volume mixing ratios (VMR) of locally emitted terpene compounds originating from conifers located at the mountain slopes were strongly enhanced, even during daytime hours. Weeks after the hailstorm our PTR-MS and PTR-time-of-flight (PTR-TOF) instruments still measured deposition fluxes of monoterpenes (m/z 137.133), sesquiterpenes (m/z 205.195), and oxygenated terpenes (m/z 153.128) to the grassland. The total amount of terpenoids (on a carbon basis) deposited to the grassland during the weeks after the hailstorm is comparable to the total methanol emission of the entire growing season (Bamberger et al., 2011). These findings pose the question whether the terminology should be adjusted from VOC emission to VOC exchange.

Eddy covariance flux measurements were carried out for two subsequent vegetation periods above a temperate mountain grassland in an alpine valley using a proton-transfer-reaction-mass spectrometer (PTR-MS) and a PTR time-of-flight-mass spectrometer (PTR-TOF). In 2008 and during the first half of the vegetation period 2009 the volume mixing ratios (VMRs) for the sum of monoterpenes (MTs) were typically well below 1 ppbv and neither MT emission nor deposition was observed. After a hailstorm in July 2009 an order of magnitude higher amount of terpenes was transported to the site from nearby coniferous forests causing elevated VMRs. As a consequence, deposition fluxes of terpenes to the grassland, which continued over a time period of several weeks without significant reemission, were observed. For days without precipitation the deposition occurred at velocities close to the aerodynamic limit. In addition to monoterpene uptake, deposition fluxes of the sum of sesquiterpenes (SQTs) and the sum of oxygenated terpenes (OTs) were detected. Considering an entire growing season for the grassland (i.e., 1 April to 1 November 2009), the cumulative carbon deposition of monoterpenes reached 276 mg C m−2. This is comparable to the net carbon emission of methanol (329 mg C m−2), which is the dominant nonmethane volatile organic compound (VOC) emitted from this site, during the same time period. It is suggested that deposition of monoterpenes to terrestrial ecosystems could play a more significant role in the reactive carbon budget than previously assumed.

Eddy covariance (EC) is the preferable technique for flux measurements since it is the only direct flux determination method. It requires a continuum of high time resolution measurements (e.g. 5–20 Hz). For volatile organic compounds (VOC) soft ionization via proton transfer reaction has proven to be a quantitative method for real time mass spectrometry; here we use a proton transfer reaction time of flight mass spectrometer (PTR-TOF) for 10 Hz EC measurements of full mass spectra up to m/z 315. The mass resolution of the PTR-TOF enabled the identification of chemical formulas and separation of oxygenated and hydrocarbon species exhibiting the same nominal mass. We determined 481 ion mass peaks from ambient air concentration above a managed, temperate mountain grassland in Neustift, Stubai Valley, Austria. During harvesting we found significant fluxes of 18 compounds distributed over 43 ions, including protonated parent compounds, as well as their isotopes and fragments and VOC-H+ – water clusters. The dominant BVOC fluxes were methanol, acetaldehyde, ethanol, hexenal and other C6 leaf wound compounds, acetone, acetic acid, monoterpenes and sequiterpenes.

We have developed a High-Temperature Proton-Transfer-Reaction Mass Spectrometer (HT-PTR-MS) in which both the ion source and the ion drift tube can be continuously operated at temperatures up to 250 °C. The instrument was characterized in a high E/N-mode (130 Td) and in a low E/N-mode (87 Td) at an operating temperature of 200 °C. Instrumental sensitivities and 2σ-detection limits were on the order of 50–110 cps/ppb and 100 ppt (1 s signal integration time), respectively. The HT-PTR-MS is primarily intended for measuring "sticky" or semi-volatile trace gases. Alternatively, it may be coupled to a particle collection/thermal desorption apparatus to measure particle-bound organics in near real-time. In view of these applications, we have measured instrumental response times for a series of reference compounds. 1/e2-response times for dimethyl sulfoxide, ammonia and monoethanolamine were in the sub-second to second regime. 1/e2-response times for levoglucosan, oxalic acid and cis-pinonic acid ranged from 8 to 370 s.

Eddy covariance (EC) is the preferable technique for flux measurements since it is the only direct flux determination method. It requires a continuum of high time resolution measurements (e.g. 5-20 Hz). For volatile organic compounds (VOC) soft ionization via proton transfer reaction has proven to be a quantitative method for real time mass spectrometry; here we use a proton transfer reaction time of flight mass spectrometer (PTR-TOF) for 10 Hz EC measurements of full mass spectra up to m/z 315. The mass resolution of the PTR-TOF enabled the identification of chemical formulas and separation of oxygenated and hydrocarbon species exhibiting the same nominal mass. We determined 481 ion mass peaks from ambient air concentration above a managed, temperate mountain grassland in Neustift, Stubai Valley, Austria. During harvesting we found significant fluxes of 18 compounds distributed over 43 ions, including protonated parent compounds, as well as their isotopes and fragments and VOC-H+ - water clusters. The dominant BVOC fluxes were methanol, acetaldehyde, ethanol, hexenal and other C6 leaf wound compounds, acetone, acetic acid, monoterpenes and sequiterpenes. The smallest reliable fluxes we determined were less than 0.1 nmol m-2 s-1, as in the case of sesquiterpene emissions from freshly cut grass. Terpenoids, including mono- and sesquiterpenes, were also deposited to the grassland before and after the harvesting. During cutting, total VOC emission fluxes up to 200 nmolC m-2 s-1 were measured. Methanol emissions accounted for half of the emissions of oxygenated VOCs and a third of the carbon of all measured VOC emissions during harvesting.

Interest in reliable quantification of organic trace compounds released from terrestrial ecosystems stems from their impact on oxidant levels such as ozone and hydroxyl radicals and on secondary organic aerosol formation. In an attempt to quantify these emissions, a disjunct sampler (DS) was coupled to a PTR-MS instrument. In the disjunct eddy covariance (DEC) technique, an instantaneous grab sample is taken at intervals of tens of seconds and vertical wind speed is recorded at the instant of sample collection. The intermittent periods are used for sample analysis by a moderately fast chemical sensor, in this case a PTR-MS instrument, which allows for fast and sensitive detection of biogenic volatile organic compounds. The vertical turbulent transport of a trace compound is then calculated from the covariance of the fluctuations in vertical wind speed and compound mixing ratio. Fluxes of monoterpenes from a Norway spruce forest were measured during the 2002 summer intensive field campaign of BEWA2000 and results compared well with data obtained using relaxed eddy accumulation (REA) and the enclosure approach. In addition to this field experiment, a laboratory test was carried out to validate the disjunct sampling procedure.

Isoprene is emitted from mature, photosynthesizing leaves of many plant species, particularly of trees. Current interest in understanding the biochemical and physiological mechanisms controlling isoprene formation is caused by the important role isoprene plays in atmospheric chemistry. Isoprene reacts with hydroxyl radicals (OH) thereby generating oxidizing agents such as ozone and organic peroxides. Ozone causes significant deterioration in air quality and can pose threats to human health therefore its control is a major goal in Europe and the United States. In recent years, much progress has been made in elucidating the pathways of isoprene biosynthesis. Nevertheless the regulatory mechanisms controlling isoprene emission are not completely understood. Light and temperature appear to be the main factors controlling short-term variations in isoprene emission. Exposure of plants to C-13 labeled carbon dioxide showed instantaneous assimilated carbon is the primary carbon source for isoprene formation. However, variations in diurnal and seasonal isoprene fluxes, which cannot be explained by temperature, light, and leaf development led to the suggestion that alternative carbon sources may exist contributing to isoprene emissions. The aim of the present study was to test whether xylem-transported carbohydrates act as additional sources for isoprene biosynthesis. For this purpose, [U-C-13] alpha-D-glucose was fed to photosynthesizing leaves via the xylem of Quercus robur L. seedlings and the incorporation of glucose derived C-13 into emitted isoprene was monitored in real time using Proton-Transfer-Reaction Mass Spectrometry (PTR-MS). A rapid incorporation of C-13 from xylem-fed glucose into single (mass 70) and double (mass 71) C-13 labeled isoprene molecules was observed after a lag phase of approximately 5 to 10 minutes. This incorporation was temperature dependent and was highest (up to 13% C-13 of total carbon emitted as isoprene) at the temperature optimum of isoprene emission (40 - 42°C) when net assimilation was strongly reduced. Fast dark-to-light transitions led to a strong single or double C-13 labeling of isoprene from xylem-fed [U-C-13] glucose. During a time period of 10 - 15 minutes up to 86% of all isoprene molecules became single or double C-13 labeled, resulting in a C-13 portion of up to 30% of total carbon emitted as isoprene. The results provide potential evidence that xylem-transported glucose or its degradation products can be used as additional precursors for isoprene biosynthesis and this carbon source becomes more important under conditions of limited photosynthesis.