INDOOR AND OUTDOOR CONCENTRATION OF PARTICULATE MATTER, ELEMENTAL CARBON AND ORGANIC CARBON AT HOMES IN FRESNO (FACES STUDY).

The differences in the pollutant emissions from the combustion of bituminous coal and biofuels (wood, straw, and miscanthus pellets) under real-world boiler operating conditions were investigated. The experiments were performed on an experimental installation that comprised an 18 kW boiler, used in domestic central heating systems, equipped with a retort furnace, an automatic fuel feeder, a combustion air fan, and a fuel storage bin. The emission factors of gaseous pollutants, particulate matter, organic carbon, elemental carbon, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), as well as some PAH concentration ratios for coal and biofuel combustion, were determined. The obtained results indicate that fuel properties have a strong influence on the emission factors of gaseous and carbonaceous pollutants. The total particulate matter (PM) emissions from the biofuel combustion were about 5-fold lower than those from the coal burned in the same boiler. The emission factors of the total carbons from the biofuel combustion were between 10 and 20 times lower than those from the coal combustion. The mean organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) emission factors, based on the burned fuel, were 161–232 and 42–221 mg/kg for the biofuels and 1264 and 3410 g/kg for the coal, respectively. The obtained results indicate that molecular diagnostic ratios, based on the concentration of PAHs, vary significantly, depending on the fuel type.

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Comparative analysis of indoor and outdoor concentration of PM10 particulate matter on example of Cracow City Center

International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology ◽

10.1007/s13762-019-02250-5 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (11) ◽

pp. 6609-6616 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

A. Saramak

Keyword(s):

Particulate Matter ◽

Comparative Analysis ◽

City Center ◽

Outdoor Concentration ◽

Indoor And Outdoor

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Contributions of biomass/biofuel burning to organic aerosols and particulate matter in Tanzania, East Africa, based on analyses of ionic species, organic and elemental carbon, levoglucosan and mannosan

Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics ◽

10.5194/acp-13-10325-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 13 (20) ◽

pp. 10325-10338 ◽

Cited By ~ 65

Author(s):

S. L. Mkoma ◽

K. Kawamura ◽

P. Q. Fu

Keyword(s):

Particulate Matter ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

East Africa ◽

Biomass Burning ◽

Elemental Carbon ◽

Dry Season ◽

Water Soluble ◽

Total Carbon ◽

Rural Site ◽

Pm2.5 And Pm10

Abstract. Atmospheric aerosol samples of PM2.5 and PM10 were collected at a rural site in Tanzania, East Africa, in 2011 during wet and dry seasons and were analysed for carbonaceous components, levoglucosan, mannosan and water-soluble inorganic ions. The contributions of biomass/biofuel burning to the organic carbon (OC) and particulate matter (PM) mass were estimated to be 46–52% and 87–13%, respectively. The mean mass concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10 were 28 ± 6 μg m−3 and 47 ± 8 μg m−3 in wet season, and 39 ± 10 μg m−3 and 61 ± 19 μg m−3 in dry season, respectively. Total carbon (TC) accounted for 16–19% of the PM2.5 mass and 13–15% of the PM10 mass. On average, 86 to 89% of TC in PM2.5 and 87 to 90% of TC in PM10 was OC, of which 67–72% and 63% was found to be water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC) in PM2.5 and PM10, respectively. We found that concentrations of levoglucosan and mannosan (specific organic tracers of pyrolysis of cellulose) well correlated with non-sea-salt potassium (nss-K+) (r2 = 0.56–0.75), OC (r2 = 0.75–0.96) and WSOC (r2 = 0.52–0.78). The K+ / OC ratios varied from 0.06 to 0.36 in PM2.5 and from 0.03 to 0.36 in PM10 with slightly higher ratios in dry season. Mean percent ratios of levoglucosan and mannosan to OC were found to be 3–4% for PM2.5 and PM10 in both seasons. We found lower levoglucosan / K+ ratios and higher K+ / EC (elemental carbon) ratios in the biomass-burning aerosols from Tanzania than those reported from other regions. This feature is consistent with the high levels of potassium reported in the soils of Morogoro, Tanzania, suggesting an importance of direct emission of potassium by soil resuspension although K+ is present mostly in fine particles. It is also likely that biomass burning of vegetation of Tanzania emits high levels of potassium that may be enriched in plant tissues. The present study demonstrates that emissions from mixed biomass- and biofuel-burning activities largely influence the air quality in Tanzania.

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Characterisation and source apportionment of atmospheric organic and elemental carbon in an urban–rural fringe area of Taiyuan, China

Environmental Chemistry ◽

10.1071/en19002 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (3) ◽

pp. 187

Author(s):

Ling Mu ◽

Mei Tian ◽

Lirong Zheng ◽

Xuemei Li ◽

Danhua Jing

Keyword(s):

Particulate Matter ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Vehicle Emissions ◽

Elemental Carbon ◽

Ambient Air ◽

Total Carbon ◽

Source Analysis ◽

Fine Particulate ◽

Urban Rural ◽

Fringe Area

Environmental contextCarbonaceous aerosols are major components of atmospheric fine-particulate material. We studied the characteristics and sources of carbonaceous aerosols in the urban–rural fringe area of Taiyuan, China, and found that pollutant levels were generally higher than in similar areas of northern China, and that vehicle emissions were the dominant source. The study highlights the importance of source analysis to help control pollution from particulate matter in the ambient air. AbstractThe concentrations of organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) were measured in 2017 at an urban–rural fringe area of Taiyuan. The annual average concentrations of PM2.5, OC and EC were 143±56, 13±8 and 10±6μgm−3 respectively, which were higher than those in most northern suburban and rural areas in China. Long-range transport and local resuspended dust caused by strong winds during the spring contributed strongly to PM2.5 mass concentrations. The OC and EC concentrations exhibited strong seasonal variations, with higher values in winter and spring, while poor correlations between OC and EC indicated the complexity of aerosol particle sources in winter and spring. Absolute principal component analysis (APCA) using eight carbon fractions was applied to determine the source contributions of total carbon (TC) in PM2.5. During winter, 61% of TC was attributed to mixed sources from coal combustion, biomass combustion and secondary organic carbon (SOC) formation, 23% to vehicle emissions, and 10% to regional origins. During spring, 57% of TC was attributed to vehicle exhaust, 18% to regional transport and SOC formation, and 13% to biomass burning. Comparative studies of hazy and non-hazy periods revealed the significance of SOC formation during hazy days.

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Research on Organic Carbon and Elemental Carbon Distribution Characteristics and Their Influence on Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) in Changchun City

Environments ◽

10.3390/environments6020021 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 21 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ju Wang ◽

Anan Yu ◽

Le Yang ◽

Chunsheng Fang

Keyword(s):

Particulate Matter ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Elemental Carbon ◽

Fine Particulate Matter ◽

Average Concentration ◽

Distribution Characteristics ◽

Heating Period ◽

Annual Average ◽

Fine Particulate ◽

Changchun City

In order to understand the distribution characteristics of organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) in PM2.5 in Changchun; China; PM2.5 samples were collected from April 2017 to December 2017 using the KC-120H particulate matter sampler; and the NIOSH 5040 method was used for determination. The results showed that the average concentration of PM2.5 in Changchun was 45.92 µg/m3 (45.92 ± 50.17), and the annual average concentrations of OC and EC ranged from 15.69 to 24.32 µg/m3 and from 1.38 to 2.33 µg/m3; respectively. The annual OC/EC ratio range was 8.08–15.44; with an average of 11.70. OC and EC concentrations in spring were the lowest; whereas higher levels of both OC and EC were found in winter. Significant correlations between OC and EC were found in the non-heating period; indicating that there was a consistent or similar source; whereas OC was non-significantly correlated with EC in the heating period; suggesting that contributions of OC were from unrelated combustion sources.

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