Comprehensive chemical characterization of PM2.5 in the large East Mediterranean-Middle East city of Beirut, Lebanon

Fakhri, Nansi; Fadel, Marc; Öztürk, Fatma; Keleş, Melek; Iakovides, Minas; Pikridas, Michael; Abdallah, Charbel; Karam, Cyril; Sciare, Jean; Hayes, Patrick L.; Afif, Charbel

doi:10.1016/j.jes.2022.07.010

Cited by 18 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 83 publications

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“…The average concentrations of V and Ni were lower than the values (1.7 to 5.7 ng•m −3 ) usually observed in the region [41,79,86]. The results were comparable to the findings reported in the literature for other European cities [87] but lower than the values found in east-Mediterranean sites (total elemental concentration higher than 2.6 µg•m −3 ) [49,88]. This is mainly due to the fact that the east-Mediterranean sites were highly affected by road traffic emissions as well as dust storm episodes from the Saharan and the Arabian deserts, leading to higher concentrations in crustal elements.…”

Section: Concentrations Of Major and Trace Elementssupporting

confidence: 80%

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Phenomenology of the Composition of PM2.5 at an Urban Site in Northern France

Allouche,

Fadel,

Ferté

et al. 2024

Atmosphere

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In this work, PM2.5 was sampled at Dunkerque, a medium-sized city located in northern France. The mean concentration of PM2.5 during the sampling period was 12.6 ± 9.5 μg·m−3. Samples were analyzed for elemental and organic carbon (EC/OC), water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), humic-like substances (HULIS-C), water-soluble inorganic ions, and major and trace elements. The origin and the variations of species concentrations were examined using elemental enrichment factors, bivariate polar plot representations, and diagnostic concentration ratios. Secondary inorganic ions were the most abundant species (36% of PM2.5), followed by OC (12.5% of PM2.5). Secondary organic carbon (SOC) concentrations were estimated to account for 52% of OC. A good correlation between SOC and WSOC indicated that secondary formation processes significantly contribute to the WSOC concentrations. HULIS-C also represents almost 50% of WSOC. The determination of diagnostic ratios revealed the influence of anthropogenic emission sources such as integrated steelworks and fuel oil combustion. The clustering of 72 h air masses backward trajectories data evidenced that higher concentrations of PM2.5, OC, and secondary inorganic aerosols were recorded when air masses came from north-eastern Europe and the French continental sector, showing the considerable impact of long-range transport on the air quality in northern France.

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Section: Concentrations Of Major and Trace Elementssupporting

confidence: 80%

“…Organic matter (OM) was calculated from organic carbon (OC), assuming a typical OM/OC ratio of 1.6 for urban areas [47,49,50].…”

Section: Chemical Mass Closurementioning

confidence: 99%

Phenomenology of the Composition of PM2.5 at an Urban Site in Northern France

Allouche,

Fadel,

Ferté

et al. 2024

Atmosphere

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“…Chromium is present in the atmosphere in mainly two valence states of non-carcinogenic Cr(III) and carcinogenic Cr(VI). The concentration of Cr(VI) was estimated according to the reported ratio of carcinogenic Cr(VI) to total Cr concentration in the literature (i.e., 1/7) [ 59 , 70 , 71 , 72 ]. Pb and Ni demonstrated the highest loadings on the collected samples, followed by trace levels of Cr(VI), As, and Cd, with concentrations below 1 ng/m 3 .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Lifetime Cancer Risk Associated with Population Exposure to PM-Bound PAHs and Carcinogenic Metals in Three Mid-Latitude Metropolitan Cities

Aldekheel

Farahani

Sioutas

2023

Toxics

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Lifetime cancer risk characterization of ambient PM-bound carcinogenic metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were examined in the cities of Los Angeles (USA), Thessaloniki (Greece) and Milan (Italy), which share similar Mediterranean climates but are different in their urban emission sources and governing air quality regulations. The samples in Milan and Thessaloniki were mostly dominated by biomass burning activities whereas the particles collected in Los Angeles were primary impacted by traffic emissions. We analyzed the ambient PM2.5 mass concentration of Cadmium (Cd), Hexavalent Chromium (Cr(VI)), Nickel (Ni), Lead (Pb), as well as 13 PAH compounds in the PM samples, collected during both cold and warm periods at each location. Pb exhibited the highest annual average concentration in all three cities, followed by Ni, As, Cr(VI), Cd and PAHs, respectively. The cancer risk assessment based on outdoor pollutants was performed based on three different scenarios, with each scenario corresponding to a different level of infiltration of outdoor pollutants into the indoor environment. Thessaloniki exhibited a high risk associated with lifetime inhalation of As, Cr(VI), and PAHs, with values in the range of (0.97–1.57) × 10−6, (1.80–2.91) × 10−6, and (0.77–1.25) × 10−6, respectively. The highest cancer risk values were calculated in Milan, exceeding the US EPA standard by a considerable margin, where the lifetime risk values of exposure to As, Cr(VI), and PAHs were in the range of (1.29–2.08) × 10−6, (6.08–9.82) × 10−6, and (1.10–1.77) × 10−6, respectively. In contrast, the estimated risks associated with PAHs and metals, except Cr(VI), in Los Angeles were extremely lower than the guideline value, even when the infiltration factor was assumed to be at peak. The lifetime cancer risk values associated with As, Cd, Ni, Pb, and PAHs in Los Angeles were in the range of (0.04–0.33) × 10−6. This observation highlights the impact of local air quality measures in improving the air quality and lowering the cancer risks in Los Angeles compared to the other two cities.

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“…Specifically, the approach used to determine the CF sums all the PM components without the OC/OM conversion. Then, with various CF values ranging from 1.4 to 2.1, a linear regression analysis of the gravimetric and reconstructed PM 10 mass concentrations is performed, and the correlation coefficient and slope are used to determine the optimal CF so that the OM mass concentration would account for the remaining PM 10 mass concentration (e.g., the CF giving a slope closest to 1 was selected) …”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of the 2021 Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba Wildfires on the Chemical Composition and Oxidative Potential of Airborne Particulate Matter in Montréal, Canada

Trieu,

Downey,

Fakhri

et al. 2024

ACS Earth Space Chem.

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In July and August 2021, wildfire smoke transported from Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba impacted the air quality in Montréal, Québec, Canada. To investigate the impact of the wildfire smoke on PM10 composition in an urban environment, samples were collected and analyzed for organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), elements, water-soluble ions, sugars, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) during contrasting periods of biomass burning and nonbiomass burning-influenced conditions. Biomass burning tracers in PM10 (e.g., levoglucosan, mannosan, galactosan, rubidium, and water-soluble potassium) and other compounds associated with biomass burning emissions (e.g., OC, EC, oxalate, succinate, and NH4 +) increased by a factor of 2.0–5.0 during biomass burning periods. The influence of wildfires had little impact on trace elements (e.g., Ba, Co, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sr, and V) concentrations which did not increase significantly compared to the urban background. Major PM10 constituents were carbonaceous matter, followed by crustal matter and secondary inorganic ions during both biomass and nonbiomass burning days. The contribution of carbonaceous matter increased significantly during biomass burning events representing up to 71% of the total PM10 mass concentration. The ascorbic acid assay found no notable difference in intrinsic oxidative potential between biomass burning and nonbiomass burning days despite decreasing proportions of redox-active metals in PM10 during episodes of biomass burning smoke. This observation indicates that other components of biomass burning PM10 such as organic matter and sulfate may directly or indirectly contribute to the oxidative potential in a way that compensates for the decreasing proportion of redox-active metals that normally dominate the oxidative potential measured by the ascorbic acid assay.

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Comprehensive chemical characterization of PM2.5 in the large East Mediterranean-Middle East city of Beirut, Lebanon

Cited by 18 publications

References 83 publications

Phenomenology of the Composition of PM2.5 at an Urban Site in Northern France

Phenomenology of the Composition of PM2.5 at an Urban Site in Northern France

Assessing Lifetime Cancer Risk Associated with Population Exposure to PM-Bound PAHs and Carcinogenic Metals in Three Mid-Latitude Metropolitan Cities

Impacts of the 2021 Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba Wildfires on the Chemical Composition and Oxidative Potential of Airborne Particulate Matter in Montréal, Canada

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