Burning Grass Releases More Nitrogen Than Wood Fire Smoke

A recent air quality study from the University of Colorado Boulder has confirmed earlier laboratory experiments that show grass and crop fire smoke carries greater amounts of nitrogen-containing volatile organic compounds (NVOCs) than wood fire smoke. Different NVOCs emit unique wavelength “signatures,” so when scientists examine smoke plumes using a high-resolution mass spectrometer, they can pinpoint which NVOCs are present.

With the spectrometer in tow, study author Matthew Coggon and his team drove in and around Boulder and Aspen, Colo., surveying various smoke plumes and learning more about what’s in the smoke. In the February issue of EARTH Magazine, learn how these scientists are using NVOCs to identify different types of smoke and to track fires around the planet.

Pollution: Burning wood

The February issue of EARTH Magazine is now available online. Read about how marine scientists have embedded robotic sensors in mussel beds to measure climate change impacts. Or read about the findings of a new study in Nature that is challenging our understanding of how canyons are formed. For these stories and more, subscribe here.