Daily concentrations of trace metals in aerosols in Beijing, China, determined by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry equipped with laser ablation analysis, and source identification of aerosols

This paper describes the daily concentrations of trace metals and ionic constituents in the aerosol of Beijing, China from March 2001 to August 2003. Daily PM 10 concentrations were also measured from September 2001 to August 2003. The daily average PM 10 concentration at Beijing, China from September 2001 to August 2003 was 171±117 μg m −3 ( n=673), which is 5-fold higher than at Yokohama, Japan. Trace metal concentrations were analyzed by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry equipped with a laser ablation sample introduction (LA/ICP-MS), which is a rapid and simultaneous method for multi-element analysis. The daily average metal concentrations in TSP in Beijing from March 2001 to August 2003 were: Al: 3.5±2.4 ( n=727), Ti: 0.47±0.35 ( n=720), V: 0.013±0.010 ( n=716), Cr: 0.019±0.015 ( n=618), Mn: 0.24±0.16 ( n=730), Fe: 5.5±3.9 ( n=728), Co: 0.0046±0.0055 ( n=629), Ni: 0.022±0.024 ( n=680), Cu: 0.11±0.11 ( n=660), Zn: 0.77±0.60 ( n=726), As: 0.048±0.047 ( n=731), Se: 0.010±0.010 ( n=550), Cd: 0.0068±0.0082 ( n=709), Sb: 0.033±0.036 ( n=687), and Pb: 0.43±0.50 ( n=728) (unit, μg m −3). All the metal concentrations in TSP in Beijing, China were 1.7–21.8 times higher than those in TSP in the center of Tokyo, Japan. Notably, As concentrations in TSP in Beijing were 20-fold higher than those in Tokyo. Source identification of aerosols in Beijing was carried out by using the chemical mass balance (CMB) receptor model, with the daily concentration of metals in the aerosol. The major primary sources of the aerosol of Beijing were considered to be soil dust and coal combustion. Vehicle exhaust contribution tended to increase.