Characterisation of urban aerosol size distribution by radiocarbon and PIXE analyses in a middle-European urban environment for source identification: a pilot study.

This study, conducted in Debrecen, Hungary, aimed to analyse atmospheric particulate matter (APM or PM) through radiocarbon and PIXE analyses during the winter smog (23-25 January) and spring (15-18 May) seasons. The information presented in this pilot study aims to provide insight into the importance of utilising detailed characteristics of the mass size distributions of fossil carbon (f) and contemporary carbon (f) content. Additionally, it seeks to compare these characteristics with the size distributions of various elements to enable even more accurate PM source identification.

Air quality challenges in Central Asian urban areas: a PM source apportionment analysis in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

This work presents the first comprehensive assessment of PM pollution sources in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. A total of 138 PM samples were collected during 2015-2016 and 2018-2019 and were analyzed through gravimetric, ED-XRF, and multi-wavelength absorption techniques. The results show that PM concentrations were substantially higher than the European annual limit value and WHO Air Quality Guidelines annual average value, with an average of 90.

Airborne Pb, Si, Zn and Pb as tracers for atmospheric pollution in Helsinki metropolitan area.

This study analyzed 16070 daily and 608 weekly air filter samples from the Helsinki metropolitan area collected between 1962 and 2005. The aim was to use the Potential Source Contribution Function (PSCF) to determine potential sources of silicon (Si), zinc (Zn), lead (Pb), and radioactive isotope Pb. The main sources for Si and Pb were industrial activities, particularly mining, metal industry, and traffic.

Source apportionment of children daily exposure to particulate matter.

The present study aims to investigate the sources of particulate pollution in indoor and outdoor environments, with focus on determining their contribution to the exposure of children to airborne particulate matter (PM). To this end, parallel indoor and outdoor measurements were carried out for a selection of 40 homes and 5 schools between September 2017 and October 2018. PM2.

Inter-laboratory comparison of ED-XRF/PIXE analytical techniques in the elemental analysis of filter-deposited multi-elemental certified reference materials representative of ambient particulate matter.

The quantification of the elemental concentration of ambient particulate matter is a challenging task because the observed elemental loadings are not well above the detection limit for most analytical techniques. Although non-destructive nuclear techniques are widely used for the chemical characterization of ambient aerosol, only one multi-element standard reference filter material that mimics ambient aerosol composition has become recently available in the market. To ensure accuracy, reliability and comparability of instruments performance, multiple reference materials with different elemental mass loadings are necessary.

Relationship between indoor and outdoor size-fractionated particulate matter in urban microenvironments: Levels, chemical composition and sources.

Exposure to particulate matter (PM) has been associated with adverse health outcomes, particularly in susceptible population groups such as children. This study aims to characterise children's exposure to PM and its chemical constituents. Size-segregated aerosol samples (PM0.

Source apportionment of the oxidative potential of fine ambient particulate matter (PM) in Athens, Greece.

The main objective of this study was chemical characterization and source apportionment of the oxidative potential of ambient PM samples collected in an urban background area in Athens, Greece. Ambient PM samples were collected during the summer (June-September) of 2017 and winter (February-March) of 2018 at a residential, urban background site in the outlying neighborhood of the Demokritos National Laboratory in Athens, Greece. The collected PM samples were analyzed for their chemical constituents including metals and trace elements, water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), elemental and organic carbon (EC/OC), and marker of biomass burning (i.