Assessing the Wet Deposition Mechanism of Benzo(a)pyrene in the Atmosphere by MF-DCCA

Chunqiong Liu,Hongliang Huang,Kai Shi,Jian Liang

doi:10.3390/atmos10060331

Chunqiong Liu, Hongliang Huang + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos10060331

Copy DOI

Journal: Atmosphere	Publication Date: Jun 18, 2019
Citations: 3	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Jishou University, Aba Teachers University

Abstract

Based on the 19 year observation from 1998 to 2016 at the Tsuan Wan and Central/Western District monitoring stations in Hong Kong, the aim of this paper was to assess the wet deposition pathway of Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) on a large time-scale. In order to achieve this goal, multi-fractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA) was used to characterize the long-term cross-correlations behaviors and multi-fractal temporal scaling properties between BaP (or PM2.5) and precipitation. The results showed that the relationships between BaP and precipitation (or PM2.5) displayed long-term cross-correlation at the time-scale ranging from one month to one year; no cross-correlation between each other was observed in longer temporal scaling regimes (greater than one year). These results correspond to the atmospheric circulation of the Asian monsoon system and are explained in detail. Similar dynamic processes of the wet deposition of BaP and PM2.5 suggested that the main removal process of atmospheric BaP was rainfall deposits of PM2.5-bound BaP. Furthermore, cross-correlations between BaP (or PM2.5) and precipitation at the long time-scale have a multi-fractal nature and long-term persistent power-law decaying behavior. The temporal evolutions of the multi-fractality were investigated by the approach of a sliding window. Based on the evolution curves of multi-fractal parameters, the wet deposition pathway of PM2.5-bound BaP is discussed. Finally, the contribution degree of wet deposition to PM2.5-bound BaP was derived from the coefficient of determination. It was demonstrated that about 45% and 60% of atmospheric BaP removal can be attributed to the wet deposition pathway of PM2.5-bound BaP for the Tsuan Wan and Central/Western District areas, respectively. The findings in this paper are of great significance for further study on the removal mechanism of atmospheric BaP in the future. The MF-DCCA method provides a novel approach to assessing the geochemical cycle dynamics of BaP.

Highlights

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are considered as a class of significant environmental pollutants, which have attracted much attention owing to their toxicological effects on human health [1,2,3,4]
The cross-correlations between precipitation and the fluctuation of PM2.5 concentration can reflect the information of PM2.5 wet deposition
Few systematic investigations focused on the long-term trends of the removal mechanism of atmospheric BaP over large time-scales

Summary

Introduction

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are considered as a class of significant environmental pollutants, which have attracted much attention owing to their toxicological effects on human health [1,2,3,4]. The removal process of atmospheric BaP is an important research topic in environmental science. The chemical and physical properties of BaP, namely, its low solubility in water and low vapor pressure, make it almost always found in the particle phase associated with particulate matter [10,11,12,13,14,15]. It is widely accepted that particulate matter tends to be deposited, especially, from the atmosphere due to the clearance of precipitation [16]. In the natural environment, the atmosphere is not a repository for BaP but rather a pathway for its transportation and transformation.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion