Evaluation of the Simulated Atmospheric Particulate Matter Chemical Composition in Athens: Organic Aerosols Formation Sensitivity Tests

Air quality simulations were performed for the Greater Athens Area in very high spatial resolution using the modeling system WRF-CAMx. Sensitivity runs were performed using the SOAP and VBS schemes for organic gas–aerosol partitioning and oxidation. In January 2019, OA-VBS decreased compared to OA-SOAP because of POA reduction. In July 2019, the OA-VBS increased with respect to OA-SOAP as a result of the increase in SOA levels exceeding the decrease in POA ones. The comparison of the WRF-CAMx results against PM10, PM2.5, and OC surface measurements provides the first indications for improved CAMx performance with the VBS scheme.