HFC-43-10mee atmospheric abundances and global emission estimates

Summary, in English

We report in situ atmospheric measurements of hydrofluorocarbon HFC-43-10mee (C₅H₂F₁₀; 1,1,1,2,2,3,4,5,5,5- decafluoropentane) from seven observatories at various latitudes, together with measurements of archived air samples and recent Antarctic flask air samples. The global mean tropospheric abundance was 0.21 ± 0.05 ppt (parts per trillion, dry air mole fraction) in 2012, rising from 0.04 ± 0.03 ppt in 2000. We combine the measurements with a model and an inverse method to estimate rising global emissions - from 0.43 ± 0.34 Gg yr^-1 in 2000 to 1.13 ± 0.31 Gg yr^-1 in 2012 (∼1.9 Tg CO₂-eq yr^-1 based on a 100 year global warming potential of 1660). HFC-43-10mee - a cleaning solvent used in the electronics industry - is currently a minor contributor to global radiative forcing relative to total HFCs; however, our calculated emissions highlight a significant difference from the available reported figures and projected estimates.

• Author: Tim Arnold; Diane J. Ivy; Christina M. Harth; Martin K. Vollmer; Jens Mühle; Peter K. Salameh; L. Paul Steele; Paul B. Krummel; Ray H.J. Wang; Dickon Young; Chris R. Lunder; Ove Hermansen; Tae Siek Rhee; Jooil Kim; Stefan Reimann; Simon O'Doherty; Paul J. Fraser; Peter G. Simmonds; Ronald G. Prinn; Ray F. Weiss
• Publishing year: 2014-03-28
• Language: English
• Pages: 2228-2235
• Publication/Series: Geophysical Research Letters
• Volume: 41
• Issue: 6
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2013GL059143
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
• Keywords: atmospheric abundance; emissions; HFC-43-10mee; mass spectrometry; radiative forcing
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 0094-8276