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Water-Soluble Ions and Trace Metals in Airborne Particles Over Urban Areas of the State of São Paulo, Brazil: Influences of Local Sources and Long Range Transport

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Abstract

The atmosphere over Brazilian cities is influenced by a variety of emissions sources. In this study, aerosol collection and back-trajectory analysis were used to determine the influence of local and remote sources. Aerosols were collected at three locations within the state of São Paulo: one megacity and two cities in which sugar cane burning in the surroundings is observed. We quantified the major water-soluble inorganic ions and trace metals. As expected, vehicle emissions influenced the atmosphere of the megacity heavily, and sugar cane burning influenced that of the other locations. During the period of this experiment the back-trajectory analysis revealed that air masses are transported into the state from the northeast of Brazil, where biomass burning occurs. Multivariate statistical analysis revealed that the two principal components account for 48.5% of the total data variance. We conclude that local sources have a strong impact on the concentrations of particulate matter and pollutants. Remote sources also contribute to the concentrations of aerosol pollutants.

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Acknowledgements

This study received financial support in the form of grants from the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP, Foundation for the Support of Research in the state of São Paulo; project #2001-01763-0). We thank Dr. Luiz R. Angelocci for thelogistical assistance provided.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Lineu Prestes, 748, 05508-000, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

    Pérola C. Vasconcellos

  2. Division of Environmental Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Block ES, Engineering Drive 4, Singapore, Singapore

    Rajasekhar Balasubramanian

  3. Institute of Chemistry, State University of Campinas, Cidade Universitária, CP 6154, Campinas, SP, Brazil

    Roy E. Bruns

  4. Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, Rua do Matão 1226, 05508-090, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

    Odon Sanchez-Ccoyllo & Maria F. Andrade

  5. Center for Environmental Chemistry, Institute for Nuclear Research, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

    Marlene Flues

Authors
  1. Pérola C. Vasconcellos
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  2. Rajasekhar Balasubramanian
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  3. Roy E. Bruns
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  4. Odon Sanchez-Ccoyllo
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  5. Maria F. Andrade
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  6. Marlene Flues
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pérola C. Vasconcellos.

Additional information

Capsule: Brazil is the largest user of alternative fuels, like alcohol and natural gas, and is developing the implementation of bio-diesel for heavy duty fleet in a large scale. These different fuels can impact negatively the air quality in a way not yet understood. Data presented here is not only of local interest, but can supply information regarding the impact of different fuels, biomass burning and air transport in the atmospheric chemistry.

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Vasconcellos, P.C., Balasubramanian, R., Bruns, R.E. et al. Water-Soluble Ions and Trace Metals in Airborne Particles Over Urban Areas of the State of São Paulo, Brazil: Influences of Local Sources and Long Range Transport. Water Air Soil Pollut 186, 63–73 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-007-9465-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-007-9465-2

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