Measurements of Br/Pb Ratios in Airborne Particles from Car Exhaust

Abstract

Concentrations of particulate bromine and lead have been measured during one summer and one winter period. The measurements were made simultaneously in five sites in a city on the Swedish west coast. A rural site about 60 km from the city was used to measure the background aerosol.Aerosol sampling was made with six dichotomous virtual impactors, which fractionate the aerosol into two modes, one fine particle mode (aerodynamic diameter, a.d. < 3.5 μm) and one coarse particle mode (3.5 μm < a.d. < 18 μm). The aerosol was collected onto thin teflon filters.Element concentrations were obtained by Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis. The element concentrations were related to air mass trajectories.The Br/Pb ratio proved to be the same on a given date for the city sites and the background site. A dependence on the air mass history was found, suggesting that it is the quality of the air basin in the region that influences the Br/Pb ratio even for fresh car exhaust. The Br/Pb ratio was the same for fine and coarse particles, indicating that the ratio is determined before coagulation with larger particles occur.The ratios between coarse and fine particles containing lead and bromine respectively were also studied. The results suggest that lead and bromine are actually attached to the same particles.