Abstract
The objective of this study was to characterize the elemental carbon and organic carbon (EC and OC, respectively) content of aerosol particles (PM 2.5) collected at Tongliao, a site in the Horqin Sandland of northeastern China. During spring 2005, the PM 2.5 mass concentration was 126±71 μg·m −3, with higher dust concentrations during five dust storms than on non-dusty days (255±77 vs. 106±44 μg·m −3). The average OC and EC concentrations in PM 2.5 determined by a thermal/optical reflectance method were 15.7±7.3 μg·m −3 and 3.3±1.7 μg·m −3, respectively, and carbonaceous aerosol accounted for 9.9% of the PM 2.5 mass during dust storms compared to 21.7% on normal days. The average ratios of OC to EC during dust storms were similar to those on non-dusty days, and the correlation coefficient between OC and EC was high, 0.86. The high OC/EC ratios, the distributions of eight carbon fractions, and the strong relationship between K with OC and EC indicate that rural biomass burning was the dominant contributor to the regional carbonaceous aerosol.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
