Abstract
Abstract. Particulate matter was collected at an urban site in Göteborg (Sweden) in February/March 2005 and in June/July 2006. Additional samples were collected at a rural site for the winter period. Total carbon (TC) concentrations were 2.1–3.6 μg m−3, 1.8–1.9 μg m−3, and 2.2–3.0 μg m−3 for urban/winter, rural/winter, and urban/summer conditions, respectively. Elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), water-insoluble OC (WINSOC), and water-soluble OC (WSOC) were analyzed for 14C in order to distinguish fossil from non-fossil emissions. As wood burning is the single major source of non-fossil EC, its contribution can be quantified directly. For non-fossil OC, the wood-burning fraction was determined independently by levoglucosan and 14C analysis and combined using Latin-hypercube sampling (LHS). For the winter period, the relative contribution of EC from wood burning to the total EC was >3 times higher at the rural site compared to the urban site, whereas the absolute concentrations of EC from wood burning were elevated only moderately at the rural compared to the urban site. Thus, the urban site is substantially more influenced by fossil EC emissions. For summer, biogenic emissions dominated OC concentrations most likely due to secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. During both seasons, a more pronounced fossil signal was observed for Göteborg than has previously been reported for Zurich, Switzerland. Analysis of air mass origin using back trajectories suggests that the fossil impact was larger when local sources dominated, whereas long-range transport caused an enhanced non-fossil signal. In comparison to other European locations, concentrations of levoglucosan and other monosaccharide anhydrides were low for the urban and the rural site in the area of Göteborg during winter.
Highlights
Airborne particulate matter (PM) influences the radiation budget directly by scattering of sunlight and indirectly by cloud formation
Concentrations of total Elemental carbon (EC) and ECfossil were higher by a factor of 2.4 and 3.1, respectively, at the urban site compared to the rural site, whereas ECwood was about the same level at the two sites or even moderately increased at the rural station
Particulate matter was collected at the urban site Femman in Goteborg, Sweden, for a summer and a winter period
Summary
Airborne particulate matter (PM) influences the radiation budget directly by scattering of sunlight and indirectly by cloud formation. It causes respiratory as well as cardiovascular diseases (Knaapen et al, 2004). Organic carbon (OC) is the non-absorptive fraction of the carbonaceous aerosol, which has a lower molecular weight than EC. It may contain reactive compounds, which take part in atmospheric-chemical transformations and enhance condensation of clouds (Tsigaridis et al, 2006) or act as toxins and allergens
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