Abstract
This study investigated the carbonaceous species [elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), water soluble organic carbon (WSOC)] along with the trace elements (Al, S, Ti, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, As, Br, Pb, Cr, F, Cl, Na, K, Mg, Ca, P) in PM10 over the megacity Delhi, India (collected from 2015–2019) to address certain significant scientific issues (i.e., what are the directionality or pathway of these emissions; what are the possible emission sources which are distressing the observation site; what are the periodical variations in these emissions; and whether the emissions are local, regional, or trans-boundary). Integration of these problems are addressed using various statistical approaches including potential source areas (PSA) [using hybrid modelling i.e., potential source contribution factor (PSCF)], the conditional bivariate probability function (CBPF), and principal component analysis (PCA). Furthermore, seasonal PSCF and CBPF indicate both local source (highly polluted residential areas, traffic congestions, and industrial emissions) and regional sources (Haryana, Punjab) dominancy during winter and post-monsoon seasons at the receptor site, whereas during summer and monsoon along with local source and the regional, trans-boundaries (Indo-Gangatic plane, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bay of Bengal) air parcel patterns also contribute to the aerosol loading at the sites. Moreover, the PCA approach framed four common sources [crustal/road dust (RD), industrial emission (IE), fossil fuel combustion + biomass burning (FCC+ BB), vehicular emission (VE)] with one mixed source over the sampling site of Delhi.
Highlights
Enhancement of anthropogenic activities in the local and regional regions of the megacity Delhi has resulted in a polluted atmospheric; exposure to such an atmosphere has a great impact on the human health and climate [1]
Important studies have been focused on the carbonaceous particles (organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC) and water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC)); such particles disturb the atmospheric chemistry resulting in poor air quality [4]
Biomass burning and incomplete in automobiles leads to ECs, while OC is generated from sources such as gasoline and diesel
Summary
Enhancement of anthropogenic activities in the local and regional regions of the megacity Delhi has resulted in a polluted atmospheric; exposure to such an atmosphere has a great impact on the human health and climate [1]. Organic carbon contains large number of volatile compounds wherein EC is defined by non-volatile compounds and further EC shows a strong light absorbing species [5]. Due to their light weight, ECs have a tendency to travel a long range. Delhi is one of the metropolitan megacities of Asia where urbanization, industrialization, and economic growth are very rapid. It is surrounded by the Indo-Gangetic plain (IGP) in the East, the Thar desert in the West, the Himalayas in the North, and the hot plains in the South region [11]. It is important to observe the atmosphere of such an urbanized city
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