scholarly journals Quantification and Characterization of Particulate Matter Generated from Unpaved Roads in the Oil Development Area of Western North Dakota

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 615-625 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumon Datta ◽  
Shafiqur Rahman ◽  
Md Saidul Borhan ◽  
Bernhardt Saini-Eidukat ◽  
Larry Cihacek ◽  
...  

Abstract. Heavy vehicle traffic on unpaved roads in western North Dakota, due to increasing oil extraction activities, is generating coarse particulate matter (PM10) and fine PM (PM2.5), and total suspended particles (TSP), potentially raising concerns for animal and human health and impacts on crop and plant growth. However, limited quantification and characterization are available for PM from unpaved roads next to oil activities. Therefore, a study was conducted to characterize and quantify the PM concentrations from heavy traffic on unpaved roads due to increasing oil activities in western North Dakota. Three unpaved road sites were selected and paired with application of two dust suppressants (brine and magnesium chloride). MiniVol air samplers were used to quantify PM, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to characterize the minerals in PM samples, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to analyze the chemical composition of soil samples. The average PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations were higher at site 2 (untreated loose gravel road) than at site 1 (periodically treated with dust suppressants) during the study period (2015-2016). In addition, the PM concentrations were lower in 2016 because of decreased oil activities at site 2. Statistical analyses revealed that the PM concentrations were mostly correlated with vehicle count in addition to temperature, wind direction, and rainfall. Magnesium chloride was the most effective treatment for reducing PM. The SEM analyses of PM samples revealed that most particulates were quartz, other silicates, or biogenic particles. Soil sample analyses revealed that the concentrations of most elements were lower than the threshold values set by the USGS National Geochemical Survey. Keywords: Air pollution, Air quality, Dust, North Dakota, Oil development, Particulate matter.

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Dufka ◽  
Bohumil Dočekal

A diffusive gradient in thin films (DGT) technique was employed in characterization of the particulate matter related to the urban area suffering from heavy traffic. Kinetics of mobilization metals fluxes from the metal-contaminated particulate matter was investigated. To monitor responses of the particulate matter sample, DGT probes of various thickness of diffusion layer were deployed in aqueous model suspensions of the particulate matter for different time periods. Particulate matter samples and exposed DGT resin gels were decomposed in a mixture of nitric and hydrochloric acid in a microwave pressurized PTFE-lined system. Total content of some traffic-related elements (Cd, Co, Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb, Pd, Pt, Rh, Sb, and V) was determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. DGT measurements revealed that two metals pools associated with particles could be recognized, which can be characterized as high soluble fraction and almost insoluble fraction. DGT-measured metal fluxes from the labile pool showed significant difference in mobilization and resupply fluxes of individual selected elements, which might reflect the origin of selected metals and their speciation in particulate matter. The DGT technique can be applied as a useful tool for characterization of metals mobilization from the particulate matter.


2009 ◽  
Vol 06 (12) ◽  
pp. 7-14
Author(s):  
Josiane LOYOLA ◽  
Simone Lorena QUITERIO ◽  
Viviane ESCALEIRA ◽  
Graciela ARBILLA

The petroleum industry has difficulties to assess the trace metal content in liquid fuels. In this work, it is proposed to solve this problem determining these metals by collecting particulate matter atmospheric samples and analysing their metal content. Samples of total particulate matter and of inhalable particles (PM10) were collected in a bus station in the period August 2006-February 2007. The only significant emission source in that location are the buses, fueled by diesel, since light duty vehicles account for about 1-2% of the total vehicular flux and no other activities are developed in the area. Metal levels were determined by ICP-OES (Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy). Ca, Mg, Fe and Al were the most abundant compounds, and account for about 50.1%, 24.2%, 6.5% and 18.7%, respectively, of the metal contain. Co, Ni, Cd, Cr and Pb were under their detection limits, except for a few samples. Ca, Mg, Zn and Cu were determined in higher ratios that those currently find in crustal materials indicating that these elements may have important combustion sources and are enriched in the soil.


Atmosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Radulescu ◽  
Stihi ◽  
Ion ◽  
Dulama ◽  
Stanescu ◽  
...  

This study is the first attempt to decipher the effect of particulate matter (PM) composition on people’s health and on historic sites, in correlation with the daily and seasonal microclimate monitoring of the indoor and outdoor areas of the Roman Mosaic Edifice museum (the maritime port of Constanta, Romania). More specifically, the increase of metal concentrations in particulate matter during the summer of 2018 and spring of 2019 in the museum under investigation could possibly be associated with the microclimates of both seasons, with coastal factors, as well as with the anthropic activities specific to the port of Constanta. FTIR and inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) techniques, used for the investigation of PM2.5–10 samples, revealed high concentrations of Fe, Al-rich, and soluble particles inside the investigated museum area. In this respect, the chemical measurements of the PM2.5–10 masses highlighted high concentrations of heavy metals (i.e., Al, Fe, Zn, Mn, and Pb) and low concentrations of trace metals (i.e., Cr, Ni, Cu, and Cd). Statistical analysis showed that the chemical compositions of the particulate matter in the indoor and outdoor areas of the Roman Mosaic Edifice were influenced by microclimatic conditions, mainly temperature and relative humidity (RH). A potential health risk for tourists is the thermal and humid conditions, alongside the toxic components of the particulate matter. This research seeks to provide solutions for improving the environmental conditions inside the Roman Mosaic Edifice and to offer useful suggestions concerning health promotion and the protection of museum exhibits against possible future deterioration.


2020 ◽  
Vol 231 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Neele van Laaten ◽  
Dirk Merten ◽  
Wolf von Tümpling ◽  
Thorsten Schäfer ◽  
Michael Pirrung

Abstract Atmospheric particulate matter has become a major issue in urban areas from both a health and an environmental perspective. In this context, biomonitoring methods are a potential complement to classical monitoring methods like impactor samplers, being spatially limited due to higher costs. Monitoring using spider webs is compared with the more common moss bag technique in this study, focusing on mass fractions and ratios of elements and the applicability for source identification. Spider webs and moss bags with Hypnum cupressiforme were sampled at the same 15 locations with different types of traffic in the city of Jena, Germany. In the samples, mass fractions of 35 elements, mainly trace metals, were determined using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) after aqua regia digestion. Significantly higher mass fractions in spider webs than in moss bags were found, even after a much shorter exposure period, and could not be ascribed completely to a diluting effect by the biological material in the samples. Different mechanisms of particle retention by the two materials are therefore assumed. More significant correlations between elements have been found for the spider web dataset. Those patterns allow for an identification of different sources of particulate matter (e.g. geogenic dust, brake wear), while correlations between elements in the moss bags show a rather general anthropogenic influence. Therefore, it is recommended to use spider webs for the short-term detection of local sources while moss bag biomonitoring is a good tool to show a broader, long-term anthropogenic influence.


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