Spectroscopic Assessment of Platinum Group Elements of PM10 Particles Sampled in Three Different Areas in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Mohammad W Kadi,Iqbal Ismail,Nadeem Ali,Abdallah A Shaltout

doi:10.3390/ijerph17093339

Abstract

Platinum group elements (PGE) including Ru, Rh, Pt and Pd have been quantified in air particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter equal or less than 10 microns (PM10) using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). PM10 aerosols have been collected from three sites representing various activities in Jeddah city, Saudi Arabia. These locations are residential site with heavy traffic, industrial site and heavy traffic and a light traffic site outside the city. To obtain reasonable data of the PGE concentrations, a group from 10 to 15 PM10 samples were collected every month. The annual and seasonal variation of the mass concentration of the PGE were demonstrated. In all locations, Pt and Pd were relatively higher than Ru and Rh possibly because their main use is in automobile catalytic converters. Concentrations of observed PGE in PM10 could be arranged in ascending order as: Rh < Ru < Pd < Pt. In case of Ru and Pt, there are clear similarities in terms of the overall mean concentrations at the sampling locations. Due to the high concentration of Ru, Rh and Pd at low traffic site, there are certainly other sources of these elements rather than vehicle catalytic converters. However, at the industrial/heavy traffic location, high concentrations of Ru were detected during February 2015. In addition, high Pt concentrations were also detected at the light traffic site during May 2015. Results indicate that Pt source in PM10 is mainly the automobile catalytic converters.

Highlights

In the last decades, notable increase in the production of the platinum group elements, including platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd), rhodium (Rh) and ruthenium (Ru), has been recognized
Platinum group elements (PGE) have low natural abundance in the continental crust, they have a wide range of applications in electrical, chemical, pesticide, dyestuff production, polymer processing, pharmaceuticals, dental implants, and industrial applications including petroleum industries [1]
This work presents the first quantitative elemental analysis of platinum group elements (PGE) in the PM10 aerosols collected from three different sites that have low and heavy density of traffic in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Summary

Introduction

Notable increase in the production of the platinum group elements, including platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd), rhodium (Rh) and ruthenium (Ru), has been recognized. Platinum group elements (PGE) have low natural abundance in the continental crust, they have a wide range of applications in electrical, chemical, pesticide, dyestuff production, polymer processing, pharmaceuticals (anticancer drugs, hydration and dehydration reactions), dental implants, and industrial applications including petroleum industries [1]. In the years of 1975 and 1986, the PGE were introduced as automobile exhaust catalysts in North America and Europe, respectively [1]. The objective was to convert noxious gases produced by the vehicles’ exhaust, such as nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, and various hydrocarbons emissions into amiable forms. Afterwards, the use of PGE as automobile exhaust catalysts was widespread all over the world.

Methods

Results

Conclusion