Using discriminant analysis as a nucleation event classification method

S. Mikkonen (1) , K. E. J. Lehtinen (1, 2) , A. Hamed (1) , J. Joutsensaari (3) , M. C. Facchini (4) , A. Laaksonen (1)

1 Department of Physics
2 Atmospheric Research Centre of Eastern Finland
3 Department of Environmental Sciences
4 ISAC - Istituto di Scienze dell'Atmosfera e del Clima

More than three years of measurements of aerosol size-distribution and different gas and meteorological parameters made in Po Valley, Italy were analysed for this study to examine which of the meteorological and trace gas variables effect on the emergence of nucleation events. As the analysis method, we used discriminant analysis with non-parametric Epanechnikov kernel, included in non-parametric density estimation method. The best classification result in our data was reached with the combination of relative humidity, ozone concentration and a third degree polynomial of radiation. RH appeared to have a preventing effect on the new particle formation whereas the effects of O₃ and radiation were more conductive. The concentration of SO₂ and NO₂ also appeared to have significant effect on the emergence of nucleation events but because of the great amount of missing observations, we had to exclude them from the final analysis.

Domaines: Océan, Atmosphère

S. Mikkonen, K. E. J. Lehtinen, A. Hamed, J. Joutsensaari, M. C. Facchini, et al.. Using discriminant analysis as a nucleation event classification method. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 2006, 6 (12), pp.5549-5557. ⟨hal-00296094⟩