The Effect of Ozone Stress on the Output of Volatile Organic Compounds and the Resulting Aerosol Properties Produced By Eastern White Pine

The eastern white pine is a tree commonly found in North America.  Several factors, such as temperature and light intensity, have been reported to be triggers of VOC emissions in plants.  However, little is known about how plants react to abiotic stress, such as an impulse of increased ozone in the air around the plant.

Previous studies have analyzed the particles that form when an eastern white pine branch is placed in an air environment with high amounts of ozone.  This method had two shortcomings.  First, the composition of the compounds given off by the stressed branch weren’t known.  Second, additional stress was applied to the tree when cutting the branch sample, so the relative effects of the ozone stress were unknown.

This study identified the compounds emitted from small eastern white pine trees under different levels of ozone stress using solid phase micro extraction (SPME) sampling method, which caused no damage or stress to the tree. The resulting aerosols produced at different ozone stress levels were analyzed using a scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) and cloud condensation nuclei counter (CCNC).