Link between isoprene and secondary organic aerosol (SOA): Pyruvic acid oxidation yields low volatility organic acids in clouds

Aqueous-phase oxidation (in clouds and aerosols) is a potentially important source of organic aerosol and could explain the atmospheric presence of oxalic acid. Methylglyoxal, a water-soluble product of isoprene, oxidizes further in the aqueous phase to pyruvic acid. Discrepancies in the literature regarding the aqueous-phase oxidation of pyruvic acid create large uncertainties in the in-cloud yields of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) and oxalic acid. Resolving the fate of aqueous-phase pyruvic acid is critical to understanding SOA formation through cloud processing of water-soluble products of isoprene, other alkenes and aromatics. In this work, aqueous-phase photochemical reactions of pyruvic acid and hydrogen peroxide at pH values typical of clouds were conducted and demonstrated that photochemical oxidation of pyruvic acid yields glyoxylic, oxalic, acetic and formic acids. Oxalic and glyoxylic acids remain mostly in the particle phase upon droplet evaporation. Thus isoprene is an important precursor of in-cloud SOA formation.