American Geophysical Union, Geophysical Research Letters, 6(41), p. 2228-2235
DOI: 10.1002/2013gl059143
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We report in situ atmospheric measurements of HFC-43-10mee (C5H2F10, 1,1,1,2,2,3,4,5,5,5-decafluoropentane) from seven observatories at various latitudes, together with measurements of archived air samples and recent Antarctic flask air samples. The global mean tropospheric abundance was 0.21 ± 0.05 ppt (parts-per-trillion, dry air mole fraction) in 2012, rising from 0.04 ± 0.03 ppt in 2000. We combine the measurements with a model and inverse method to estimate rising global emissions –– from 0.43 ± 0.34 Gg yr-1 in 2000 to 1.13 ± 0.31 Gg yr-1 in 2012 (~1.9 Tg CO2-eq yr-1 based on a 100-yr global warming potential of 1,660). HFC-43-10mee –– a cleaning solvent used in the electronics industry –– is currently a minor contributor to global radiative forcing relative to total HFCs; however, our calculated emissions highlight a significant difference from the available reported figures and projected estimates.