Tony Ward 1, Barbara Trost2, Jim Conner3, James Flanagan4, R.K.M. Jayanty4

  • 1 Center for Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, USA
  • 2 Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, Anchorage, Alaska, USA
  • 3 Fairbanks North Star Borough, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
  • 4 RTI International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA

Received: November 18, 2011
Revised: February 28, 2012
Accepted: February 28, 2012
Download Citation: ||https://doi.org/10.4209/aaqr.2011.11.0208  

  • Download: PDF


Cite this article:
Ward, T., Trost, B., Conner, J., Flanagan, J. and Jayanty, R. (2012). Source Apportionment of PM2.5 in a Subarctic Airshed - Fairbanks, Alaska. Aerosol Air Qual. Res. 12: 536-543. https://doi.org/10.4209/aaqr.2011.11.0208


 

ABSTRACT


Fairbanks, Alaska has some of the highest measured ambient PM2.5 concentrations in the United States, with wintertime levels often exceeding the 24-hour PM2.5 National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) of 35 µg/m3. In an effort to understand the sources of PM2.5 in the Fairbanks airshed, source apportionment using Chemical Mass Balance (CMB) modeling was conducted at four locations in Fairbanks over a three-winter period (2008/2009, 2009/2010, and 2010/2011).

At each of the four sites, PM2.5 concentrations averaged between 22.5 ± 12.0 µg/m3 and 26.5 ± 18.9 µg/m3, with frequent exceedances of the 24-hour NAAQS on the scheduled sample days. The results of the CMB modeling revealed that wood smoke (likely residential wood combustion) was the major source of PM2.5 throughout the winter months in Fairbanks, contributing between 60% and nearly 80% of the measured PM2.5 at the four sites. The other sources of PM2.5 identified by the CMB model were secondary sulfate (8–20%), ammonium nitrate (3–11%), diesel exhaust (not detected-10%), and automobiles (not detected-7%). Approximately 1% of the PM2.55 was unexplained by the CMB model. Additional research is needed to confirm the woodsmoke results of the CMB model, as well as determine which sources (fuel oil residential heating, coal combustion, etc.) contribute to the measured secondary sulfate.


Keywords: Chemical Mass Balance; Source apportionment; Woodstoves; Biomass smoke, PM2.5


Share this article with your colleagues 

 

Subscribe to our Newsletter 

Aerosol and Air Quality Research has published over 2,000 peer-reviewed articles. Enter your email address to receive latest updates and research articles to your inbox every second week.

7.3
2022CiteScore
 
 
77st percentile
Powered by
Scopus
 
   SCImago Journal & Country Rank

2021 Impact Factor: 4.53
5-Year Impact Factor: 3.668

The Future Environment and Role of Multiple Air Pollutants

Aerosol and Air Quality Research partners with Publons

CLOCKSS system has permission to ingest, preserve, and serve this Archival Unit
CLOCKSS system has permission to ingest, preserve, and serve this Archival Unit

Aerosol and Air Quality Research (AAQR) is an independently-run non-profit journal that promotes submissions of high-quality research and strives to be one of the leading aerosol and air quality open-access journals in the world. We use cookies on this website to personalize content to improve your user experience and analyze our traffic. By using this site you agree to its use of cookies.