FACTOR ANALYSIS Y CLUSTER ANALYSIS PARA CONCENTRACIONES DE PM^sub 10^ EN MINAS DE CARBÓN A CIELO ABIERTO: CERREJÓN, COLOMBIA

The Cerrejón coal mine in the north of Colombia is one of the largest open pits in South America. The Cerrejon has an air quality monitoring network with over 30 years of records of the levels of particulate material. Between January 2012 and November 2013, the mean daily concentrations of PM10 were registered in eight stations of the air quality monitoring network using high volume samplers. Similarly, measurements of wind speed and direction were studied during this period. The average concentrations of PM10 in the eight stations varied in the range 17,49-42,01pg-m-3. These levels do not exceed the maxand Juan M. Marín imum permissible daily level as laid down in the guide of the World Health Organization. The techniques of factor analysis (FA) and cluster analysis (CA) as well as the wind direction and speed were used to infer the main sources of pollution and to determine the special patterns of PM10 concentrations. The FA identified two groups with the same concentration behavior; these two groups have extraction pits located upwind. The results of the CA showed three differential clusters with the same stations identified in the FA. These techniques identified the coal pits located upwind of the stations as potential sources of PM10.