Yearbooks of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry
All yearbook reports of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry can be found on the pages of the Max Planck Society by following this link.
Research report 2020
Fighting the coronavirus with fabrics and paper towels
Author: Drewnick, Frank
Department: Partikelchemie, Gruppe „Instrumentelle Aerosolanalytik“
Summary:
In spring 2020, group leader Frank Drewnick started a research series at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, which was spontaneously initiated during the Covid-19 pandemic. In this series, they investigated everyday materials for their suitability for face masks to support the selection of materials and to better understand which factors influence their efficacy. The group repurposed measuring instruments which they normally use to analyze the properties of atmospheric aerosol particles to measure the filter efficiency and pressure drop of household materials.
For the full text, see the German version.
For the full text, see the German version.
Research report 2019
Air pollution shortens Europeans' lives by around two years
Author: Lelieveld, Jos
Department: Atmospheric Chemistry
Summary:
Air pollution has been significantly underestimated as a health hazard. Calculations of the global health study Global Burden of Disease (GBD) indicated that the global mortality rate due to air pollution was around 4.5 million people a year. In a new study, we show that this number is much higher: 8.8 million per year. In Europe alone, nearly 800,000 people die prematurely every year as a result of air pollution.
For the full text, see the German version.
Research report 2018
Interactions of biological aerosol particles with climate, air pollutants, and health
Author: Fröhlich, Janine
Department: Multiphase Chemistry Department
Summary:
Biological aerosol particles are omnipresent in the atmosphere because air is one of the major media for the spread of microorganisms and pollen. The airborne particles affect climate and health. In addition, numerous physical and chemical interactions in the atmosphere lead to altered particle properties. Our research focuses on biological aerosols, their ability to act as ice cores, and the impact of air pollutants on proteins and allergies.
For the full text, see the German version.
Research report 2017
Atmospheric CO2 changes and Quaternary Ice Ages
Author: Martínez-García, Alfredo; Haug, Gerald H.
Department: Climate Geochemistry Department
Summary:
During the Quaternary, changes in atmospheric CO2 concentrations led to major climate changes such as glacial/interglacial cycles. Our studies indicate that the combination of a decrease in ocean overturning through an increased stratification in the Antarctic zone of the Southern Ocean and increased organic carbon export through iron fertilization in the sub-Antarctic zone of the Southern Ocean can explain much of the G/IG's atmospheric CO2 changes during the last 800,000 years and the entire Quaternary.
For the full text, see the German version.
Research report 2016
Radicals in the dark: NO3 and the nighttime chemistry of the troposphere
Authors: Crowley, John; Lelieveld, Jos
Department: Atmospheric Chemistry
Summary: Atmospheric chemistry does not stop at sunset but continues via the formation and reactions of the NO3 radical. Whilst this dark chemistry is distinct from that during the day, the day-night systems are strongly coupled. Understanding the present composition of the troposphere and the ability to predict the impact of increasing anthropogenic emissions in the future require detailed understanding of the multifarious gas-phase and heterogeneous processes, both night and day.
For the full text, see the German version.