Assessment of Outdoor Pollution with Submicrometric and Fine Particulate Matter in Ploiesti City, Romania

Airborne particulate matter (PM) is a major environmental problem in urban areas mainly because of its demonstrated impact on human health. The present work aimed to assess the outdoor pollution to fine (PM2.5), and submicrometric (PM1) particulate matter that includes the ultrafine fraction - UFP), in Ploiesti city, which is a major urban-industrial area in the Southeast of Romania. This is the first study in an urban area of Romania that analyzes the spatiotemporal variation of PM2.5 and PM1. Particulate matter samples collected in sequential monitoring campaigns performed in 2015 were investigated using 12 relevant sampling points. A precision optical portable monitoring system with a laser beam (DusttrakTM DRX 8533EP) was used for PM assessments.. It was observed that Ploiesti inner city presented moderate and unhealthy for sensitive groups conditions for particulate pollution with PM2.5 depending on the area of the city. The difference between the PM10 and PM1 medians of all sampling points was only 2.2 g m-3, PM4 and PM1 of 1.5 g m-3, and PM2.5 and PM1 of 0.8 g m-3 respectively (p ] 0.05 DL5% = 5.8 g m-3). The correlation between the PM fractions was very significant (p [ 0.01; r = 0.996). The results pointed out that PM1, which has an increased impact on human health, because it includes the UFP, was the most frequent fraction in Ploiesti inner city.