Nuclear microprobe analysis and source apportionment of individual atmospheric aerosol particles

doi:10.1016/0168-583X(93)95707-C

Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms

Volume 75, Issues 1–4, 3 April 1993, Pages 521-525

https://doi.org/10.1016/0168-583X(93)95707-C Get rights and content

Abstract

In atmospheric aerosol research, one key issue is to determine the sources of the airborne particles. Bulk PIXE analysis coupled with receptor modeling provides a useful, but limited view of the aerosol sources influencing one particular site or sample. The scanning nuclear microprobe (SNM) technique is a microanalytical technique that gives unique information on individual aerosol particles. In the SNM analyses a 1.0 μm size 2.4 MeV proton beam from the Oxford SNM was used. The trace elements with Z > 11 were measured by the particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) method with detection limits in the 1–10 ppm range. Carbon, nitrogen and oxygen are measured simultaneously using Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS). Atmospheric aerosol particles were collected at the Brazilian Antarctic Station and at biomass burning sites in the Amazon basin tropical rain forest in Brazil.

In the Antarctic samples, the sea-salt aerosol particles were clearly predominating, with NaCl and CaSO₄ as major compounds with several trace elements as Al, Si, P, K, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br, Sr, and Pb. Factor analysis of the elemental data showed the presence of four components: 1) soil dust particles; 2) NaCl particles; 3) CaSO₄ with Sr; and 4) Br and Mg. Strontium, observed at 20–100 ppm levels, was always present in the CaSO₄ particles. The hierarchical cluster procedure gave results similar to the ones obtained through factor analysis. For the tropical rain forest biomass burning aerosol emissions, biogenic particles with a high organic content dominate the particle population, while K, P, Ca, Mg, Zn, and Si are the dominant elements. Zinc at 10–200 ppm is present in biogenic particles rich in P and K. The quantitative aspects and excellent detection limits make SNM analysis of individual aerosol particles a very powerful analytical tool.

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Nuclear microprobe analysis and source apportionment of individual atmospheric aerosol particles

Abstract

Nucl. Instr. and Meth.

Nucl. Instr. and Meth.

Nucl. Instr. and Meth.