A tentative study of urban and suburban fine particles (PM_2.5) collected in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the mass, black carbon (BC), and elemental concentrations in fine particles (PM 2.5 ) and their variations at two sites in Ouagadougou, the capital city of Burkina Faso. The weather situation in Ouagadougou during the field campaign was dominated by high pressure with variable cloudiness and no precipitation. Diurnal temperatures varied between 19 and 38 • C and relative humidity between 10 and 60%. Winds in Ouagadougou were generally coming in from the north, showing a diurnal pattern with gusts of up to 6 m/s during daytime, while evenings and nights were calmer with very stable atmospheric conditions. However, during part of this field campaign, a period of nighttime moderately stable atmospheric conditions occurred with increased wind speed and more easterly winds. Cyclones were used for the PM 2.5 particle collection at both sites. The elemental analysis was done using energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) spectroscopy. Cl, K, Ca, Ti, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Br, Rb, Sr, and Pb were identified and quantified in most of the samples. The particle mass concentration was 27-164 µg/m 3 while BC varied between 1.3 and 8.2 µg/m 3 . No influence of leaded gasoline was found. Soil dust was identified as a major component of the particles, which was confirmed by comparing with the elements in a soil sample. A significant difference in elemental, BC, and mass concentrations was seen between periods with very stable and moderately stable atmospheric conditions.

Spectroscopic investigation of PM2.5 collected at industrial, residential and traffic sites in Taif, Saudi Arabia

“…During last years, the fast increase in vehicles population in Taif city and the increasing traffic congestions could be reasons for the observed BC concentrations (Oanh et al, 2010). The present BC content seems to be lower than the one found in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso where it was 5.5% (Boman et al, 2009) and in Cairo, Egypt where it was 7.3% , indicating a better vehicle standard in Taif city.…”

Interactions of atmospheric gases and aerosols with the monsoon dynamics over the Sudano-Guinean region during AMMA

“…However, the amount of VOCs is low; for instance, in BAe-146 measurements VOC concentration are lower than 10 ppb (e.g. Capes et al, 2009;Ancellet et al, 2011). Thus CO produced by VOCs oxidation is low (a few ppb).…”

“…In Accra (Ghana), Dionisio et al (2010) have measured PM 2.5 up to 200 µg m −3 (based on 1 min averages) in streets polluted by wood stoves, heavy traffic and trash burning. In Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) PM 2.5 observations (based on daily averages) reach 164 µg m −3 (Boman et al, 2009) and CO concentration measured in traffic frequently exceed all World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines (Lindén et al, 2008).…”

Elemental characterization and source identification of the near‐road PM2.5 using EDXRF in Chengdu, China

“…K displayed the highest concentration during the sampling campaigns among 11 elements (>1,000 ng/m 3 ). In urban areas, there are multiple sources for K, such as biomass combustion [21] and soil/crustal emissions [22] . In descending order, S, Fe, Si, and Al were the other four enriched elements (>100 ng/m 3 ).…”