Abstract. This study investigates the contribution of potential sources to the submicron (PM 1 ) organic aerosol (OA) simultaneously detected at an urban background (UB) and a road site (RS) in Barcelona during the 30 days of the intensive field campaign of SAPUSS (Solving Aerosol Problems by Using Synergistic Strategies, September-October 2010). A total of 103 filters at 12 h sampling time resolution were collected at both sites. Thirty-six neutral and polar organic compounds of known emission sources and photo-chemical transformation processes were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The concentrations of the trace chemical compounds analyzed are herein presented and discussed.Additionally, OA source apportionment was performed by multivariate curve resolution-alternating least squares (MCR-ALS) and six OA components were identified at both sites: two were of primary anthropogenic OA origin and three of secondary OA origin, while a sixth one was not clearly defined. Primary organics from emissions of local anthropogenic activities (urban primary organic aerosol, or POA Urban), mainly traffic emissions but also cigarette smoke, contributed 43 % (1.5 µg OC m −3 ) and 18 % (0.4 µg OC m −3 ) to OA at RS and UB, respectively. A secondary primary source -biomass burning (BBOA) -was found in all the samples (average values 7 % RS; 12 % UB; 0.3 µg OC m −3 ), but this component was substantially contributing to OA only when the sampling sites were under influence of regional air mass circulation (REG.). Three secondary organic aerosol (SOA) components (describing overall 60 % of the variance) were observed in the urban ambient PM 1 . Products of isoprene oxidation (SOA ISO) -i.e.2-methylglyceric acid, C 5 alkene triols and 2-methyltetrols -showed the highest abundance at both sites when the city was under influence of inland air masses. The overall concentrations of SOA ISO were similar at both sites (0.4 and 0.3 µg m −3 , or 16 % and 7 %, at UB and RS, respectively). By contrast, a SOA biogenic component attributed to α-pinene oxidation (SOA BIO PIN) presented average concentrations of 0.5 µg m −3 at UB (24 % of OA) and 0.2 µg m −3 at RS (7 %), respectively, suggesting that this SOA component did not impact the two monitoring sites at the same level. A clear anti-correlation was observed between SOA ISO and SOA PIN during nucleation days, surprisingly suggesting that some of the growth of urban freshly nucleating particles may be driven by biogenic α-pinene oxidation products but inhibited by isoprene organic compounds. A third SOA component was formed by a mixture of aged anthropogenic and biogenic secondary organic compounds (SOA Aged) that accumulated under stagnant atmospheric conditions, contributing for 12 % to OA at RS (0.4 µg OC m −3 ) and for 18 % at UB (0.4 µg OC m −3 ).A sixth component, formed by C 7 -C 9 dicarboxylic acids and detected especially during daytime, was called "urban oxygenated organic aerosol" (OOA Urban) due to its high abundance at urban RS (23 %; 0.8 µg OCm −3 ) vs. ...

Exposure to PAHs, and in particular to BPA, is associated with subclinical changes on the caudate nucleus, even below the legislated annual target levels established in the European Union. The behavioral consequences of this induced brain change were not identified in this study, but given the caudate nucleus involvement in many crucial cognitive and behavior processes, this volume reduction is concerning for the children's neurodevelopment.

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DAURE (Determination of the Sources of Atmospheric Aerosols in Urban and Rural Environments in the Western Mediterranean) was a multidisciplinary international field campaign aimed at investigating the sources and meteorological controls of particulate matter in the Western Mediterranean Basin (WMB). Measurements were simultaneously performed at an urban-coastal (Barcelona, BCN) and a rural-elevated (Montseny, MSY) site pair in NE Spain during winter and summer. State-of-the-art methods such as 14 C analysis, proton-transfer reaction mass spectrometry, and high-resolution aerosol mass spectrometry were applied for the first time in the WMB as part of DAURE. WMB regional pollution episodes were associated with high concentrations of inorganic and organic species formed during the transport to inland areas and built up at regional scales. Winter pollutants accumulation depended on the degree of regional stagnation of an air mass under anticyclonic conditions and the planetary boundary layer height. In summer, regional recirculation and biogenic secondary organic aerosols (SOA) formation mainly determined the regional pollutant concentrations. The contribution from fossil sources to organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) and hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol concentrations were higher at BCN compared with MSY due to traffic emissions. The relative contribution of nonfossil OC was higher at MSY especially in summer due to biogenic emissions. The fossil OC/EC ratio at MSY was twice the corresponding ratio at BCN indicating that a substantial fraction of fossil OC was due to fossil SOA. In winter, BCN cooking emissions were identified as an important source of modern carbon in primary organic aerosol.

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