Elemental Composition of Particulate Matter Air Pollution Collected Around Industrial Area in East Java

Abstract

Air pollution is one of the key environmental and public health concerns in urban areas in Indonesia. The environment impacts are particularly severe in Java region where the cities have a combination of intense industrial activities, large populations, and increase of motor vehicle usage. This paper describes results from a detailed elemental characterization study conducted in Surabaya, East Java. Samples of airborne particulate matter, PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 were collected once a week using a Gent stacked filter sampler during 2012-2015. The samples were analyzed for their elemental composition and black carbon (BC) content by Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) and light absorption, respectively. The mass concentration of PM2.5 and PM10 ranged from 4.8 to 30.8 μg/m3 and 9.4 to 114.9 μg/m3, respectively. The annual average PM2.5 obtained during over the period of 2012 to 2015 would be in violation of the Indonesian annual average standard concentrations of 15 μg/m3. The distributions of the ratio of PM2.5 to PM10 is less than 0.5. The average ratio of BC concentrations compared to the PM2.5 concentrations was 22.6 %. Several composition of elemental concentration were also determined and the results showed that lead level in PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 was significantly higher with the maximum concentrations were 2779 and 2258 ng/m3 respectively. The Pb concentrations in Surabaya were tens to thousand times higher than in other cities. These results could be used to provide an overview of the measurements of the concentrations and composition of particulate air pollution in Surabaya and as a key in identification and estimation of pollutant sources to design the appropriate and right policies.