Investigation of size-fractionated urban aerosol and trace gases in Budapest by nuclear-related and other analytical techniques

An air pollution study was conducted at two urban residential sites in Budapest (one representing the downtown, the other representing a wooded suburb) from 9 April till 17 May 1996. Size-fractionated aerosol samples were simultaneously collected on a daily basis, and meteorological conditions were recorded at both sampling sites. Stacked filter units (SFUs) with an upper size inlet cut-off were used as sampling device separating the urban aerosol into a coarse (about 10-2 μm equivalent aerodynamic diameter, EAD) and a fine (< 2 μm EAD) size fraction. In addition, atmospheric concentrations of some criteria pollutants, e.g. NO, NO2, SO2, CO and the total mass of the suspended particulate matter were measured every half hour at one of the sampling sites by commercial equipment. The SFU filters were analyzed by gravimetry for the total particle mass, by a light reflectance technique for black carbon, by particle-induced X-ray emission analysis and instrumental neutron activation analysis for elemental composition (in combination for up to 40-45 elements). The analytical results were used for characterizing the levels and the multi-elemental composition of the urban aerosol at both sampling sites and for both size fractions, for investigating the atmospheric concentrations and diurnal variation of some criteria pollutants, and for comparing the time-trends of aerosols and trace gases. Identification of the major source types of the aerosol fractions and trace gases, and assessment of the relative contribution from these sources are to be accomplished by multivariate receptor modeling. The present paper reports on the status of the air pollution study, and gives a discussion of the results