Inorganic Chemical Composition of Fine Particulates in Medium-Sized Urban Areas: A Case Study of Brazilian Cities

Abstract

The aim of this study was to characterize the inorganic chemical composition of fine inhalable atmospheric particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) in medium-sized cities in Brazil. These cities account for a significant proportion of the population and are growing at rates above the national average, thereby demonstrating the importance of carefully analysing the possible impact of such growth on air quality over the coming decades. In 2013 and 2014, this study collected PM 2.5 samples from sites in the cities of Londrina and Maringa in two seasons: winter and summer. The mean concentration of PM 2.5 ranged from 4.4 µg m -3 and 3.7 µg m -3 during the summer to 10.3 µg m -3 and 8.0 µg m -3 in winter in Londrina and Maringa, respectively. The analysis of the major water-soluble ions, nitrate, sulphate and chloride, showed that they accounted for between 16.5% and 35.1% from the mass of PM 2.5 , with sulphate providing the greatest contribution in all the campaigns. The nitrate/sulphate ratios ranged from 0.2 and 0.6, which are similar to the figures cited in the literature for other regions of the world. Although the PM 2.5 concentrations are much lower than those observed in Asia and in Sao Paulo the participation of ions (%) is very close to that observed in Asian cities and significantly higher than the values recorded in other areas of Brazil, possibly as a result of the increased influence of burning of biomass and waste. The metals Zn, Pb, Cu and Mn found in the samples from all campaigns indicate that, in general, mobile sources are the main contributor to PM 2.5 . The winter campaigns showed the highest concentrations of black carbon equivalent (BCe). Absolute principal component analysis and enrichment factor analysis indicate the contribution of vehicular emission sources and biomass and waste burning to the inorganic chemical composition of PM 2.5 .

Assessment of airborne particles and bioaerosols concentrations in a waste recycling environment in Brazil

“…Mean PM 2.5 concentrations ranged from 15.0 to 25.5 µg m −3 , from 10.1 to 37.2 µg m −3 , and from 6.5 to 29.3 µg m −3 in winter, spring, and summer, respectively. Beal et al 50 found mean PM 2.5 values of 4.4 µg m −3 during summer and 10.3 µg m −3 in winter for the city of Londrina.…”

“…Beal et al 50 reported a decrease in the mass concentration of PM as higher values of relative humidity were registered due to the wet deposition of the pollutants, whereas higher temperature values caused an increase in the mass concentration of PM 2.5-10 . Total and respirable PM were negatively correlated with humidity and positively correlated with temperature 66 .…”

“…Throughout the sampling week in August and February, respectively, 58.4 and 68.2 mm rainfall occurred compared to 39.2 mm in October 51 , which may have influenced the results since precipitation also contributes to the removal of atmospheric PM due to wet deposition 50,70,71 (see Supplementary Tables S2, S3 that provide the data for all meteorological variables).…”

Black Carbon Associated to PM1.0 and PM2.5: Mass Variation due to Combustion of Biodiesel/Diesel Blends (B5, B6, B7 and B8)

“…16 BC concentration was obtained from reflectance value, filter area and sample volume. 17 The conversion of the reflected light is inversely proportional to the light absorbed, which is a function of the quantity of absorbent material present in the sample. BC concentration is given in µg m -3 .…”

Genotoxic effects of daily personal exposure to particle mass and number concentrations on buccal cells

“…The inhaled dose of particles obtained in this study means an average inhaled dose considering the diversity of exposure conditions along voluntary workday, which are the real-world conditions people are usually exposed to in urban environments. Health effects associated with inhaled dose of particles may be higher when considering how variable the chemical composition can be and their toxicity, with metallic and organic compounds in their composition (Beal et al, 2017;Ham and Kleeman, 2011).…”