Organic molecular markers and signature from wood combustion particles in winter ambient aerosols: aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) and high time-resolved GC-MS measurements in Augsburg, Germany

The impact of wood combustion on ambient aerosols was investigated in Augsburg, Germany during a winter measurement campaign of a six-week period. Special attention was paid to the high time resolution observations of wood combustion with different mass spectrometric methods. Here we present and compare the results from an Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) and gas chromatographic &ndash; mass spectrometric (GC-MS) analysed PM₁ filters on an hourly basis. This includes source apportionment of the AMS derived organic matter (OM) using positive matrix factorisation (PMF) and analysis of levoglucosan as wood combustion marker, respectively. <br><br> During the measurement period nitrate and OM mass are the main contributors to the defined submicron particle mass of AMS and Aethalometer with 28% and 35%, respectively. Wood combustion organic aerosol (WCOA) contributes to OM with 23% on average and 27% in the evening and night time. Conclusively, wood combustion has a strong influence on the organic matter and overall aerosol composition. Levoglucosan accounts for 14% of WCOA mass with a higher percentage in comparison to other studies. The ratio between the mass of levoglucosan and organic carbon amounts to 0.06. <br><br> This study is unique in that it provides a one-hour time resolution comparison between the wood combustion results of the AMS and the GC-MS analysed filter method at a PM₁ particle size range. The comparison of the concentration variation with time of the PMF WCOA factor, levoglucosan estimated by the AMS data and the levoglucosan measured by GC-MS is highly correlated (<i>R</i>² = 0.84), and a detailed discussion on the contributors to the wood combustion marker ion at mass-to-charge ratio 60 is given. At the end, both estimations, the WCOA factor and the levoglucosan concentration estimated by AMS data, allow to observe the variation with time of wood combustion emissions (gradient correlation with GC-MS levoglucosan of <i>R</i>² = 0.84). In the case of WCOA, it provides the estimated magnitude of wood combustion emission. Quantitative estimation of the levoglucosan concentration from the AMS data is problematic due to its overestimation in comparison to the levoglucosan measured by the GC-MS

Source apportionment and the role of meteorological conditions in the assessment of air pollution exposure due to urban emissions

As particulate matter (PM) impacts human health, knowledge about its composition, exposure and source apportionment is required. A study of the urban atmosphere in the case of Augsburg, Germany, during winter (31 January–12 March 2010) is thus presented here. Investigations were performed on the basis of aerosol mass spectrometry and further air pollutants and meteorological measurements, including mixing layer height. Organic matter was separated by source apportionment of PM1 with positive matrix factorization (PMF) in three factors: OOA – oxygenated organic aerosol (secondary organic factor), HOA – hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol (traffic factor or primary organic factor) and WCOA – wood combustion organic aerosol (wood combustion factor), which extend the information from black carbon (BC) measurements. PMF was also applied to the particle size distribution (PSD) data of PM2.5 to determine different source profiles and we assigned them to the particle sources: nucleation aerosol, fresh traffic aerosol, aged traffic aerosol, stationary combustion aerosol and secondary aerosol. Ten different temporal phases were identified on the basis of weather characteristics and aerosol composition and used for correlations of all air pollutants and meteorological parameters. While source apportionment from both organic PM composition and PSD agree and show that the main emission sources of PM exposure are road traffic as well as stationary and wood combustion, secondary aerosol factor concentrations are very often the highest ones. The hierarchical clustering analysis with the Ward method of cross-correlations of each air pollutant and PM component and of the correlations of each pollutant with all meteorological parameters provided two clusters: "secondary pollutants of PM1 and fine particles" and "primary pollutants (including CO and benzene) and accumulation mode particles". The dominant meteorological influences on pollutant concentrations are wind speed and mixing layer height which are coupled with a certain wind direction. The compounds of the cluster "secondary pollutants and fine particles" show a negative correlation with absolute humidity, i.e., low concentrations during high absolute humidity and vice versa. The PM10 limit value exceedances originated not only from the emissions but also in combination with specific meteorological conditions. NC3-10 (number concentration of nucleation mode particles) and NC10-30 (Aitken mode particles), i.e., ultrafine particles and the fresh traffic aerosol, are only weakly dependent on meteorological parameters and thus are driven by emissions. The results of this case study provide information about chemical composition and causes of PM exposure during winter time in urban air pollution

Influences of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcanic plume on air quality in the northern Alpine region

A series of major eruptions of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland started on 14 April 2010 and continued until the end of May 2010. The volcanic emissions moved over nearly the whole of Europe and were observed first on 16 April 2010 in Southern Germany with different remote sensing systems from the ground and space. Enhanced PM10 and SO2 concentrations were detected on 17 April at mountain stations (Zugspitze/Schneefernerhaus and Schauinsland) as well as in Innsbruck by in situ measurement devices. On 19 April intensive vertical mixing and advection along with clear-sky conditions facilitated the entrainment of volcanic material down to the ground. The subsequent formation of a stably stratified lower atmosphere with limited mixing near the ground during the evening of 19 April led to an additional enhancement of near-surface particle concentrations. Consequently, on 19 April and 20 April exceedances of the daily threshold value for particulate matter (PM10) were reported at nearly all monitoring stations of the North Alpine foothills as well as at mountain and valley stations in the northern Alps. The chemical analyses of ambient PM10 at monitoring stations of the North Alpine foothills yielded elevated Titanium concentrations on 19/20 April which prove the presence of volcanic plume material. Following this result the PM10 threshold exceedances are also associated with the volcanic plume. The entrainment of the volcanic plume material mainly affected the concentrations of coarse particles (>1 μm) – interpreted as volcanic ash – and ultrafine particles (<100 nm), while the concentrations of accumulation mode aerosol (0.1–1 μm) were not changed significantly. With regard to the occurrence of ultrafine particles, it is concluded that their formation was triggered by high sulphuric acid concentrations which are necessarily generated by the photochemical processes in a plume rich in sulphur dioxide under high solar irradiance. It became evident that during the course of several days, the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic emissions influenced the near-surface atmosphere and thus the ambient air quality. Although the volcanic plume contributed to the overall exposure of the population of the northern Alpine region on two days, only minor effects on the exacerbation of respiratory and cardiovascular symptoms can be expected