Preparation of a gis based emission inventory of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOC) in Turkey

The main source of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) is the terrestrial vegetation. Plants synthesize BVOCs in substantial amounts during respiration and photosynthesis and emit to the atmosphere. BVOCs emitted from plants play a significant role in the photochemical processes and contribute to tropospheric ozone and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation in the presence of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sunlight. As a result of these photochemical reactions, BVOCs indirectly deteriorate air quality and affect human health. The main aim of this study is to inventory BVOC emissions in Turkey. In recent studies, emission rates of isoprene, monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and oxygenated VOCs from thirty one commonly grown tree species and seven endemic tree species in the forested areas of Turkey were determined using a dynamic-enclosure sampling method in the field followed by thermal desorption (TD) gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis in the laboratory. Using specific emission rates of tree species obtained from these previous studies, a spatially and temporally resolved national emission inventory of BVOC emissions in the forested areas of Turkey was prepared within the scope of this study. Emissions were distributed to a forested area of about twenty two million ha including coniferous and broadleaved species. This study provides the first detailed spatially high resolution based BVOC emissions inventory in Turkey. The inventory will serve as a database for further modeling studies.