Chemical characteristics of Asian dust aerosol from Hunshan Dake Sandland in Northern China

Dust aerosol was sampled at three sites in north China along the northern route of the dust events in spring 2001. Mass concentrations and concentrations of the chemical elements associated with aerosols were examined. The average mass concentration of TSP during the field period were 0.545 mg m−3 at Sanggen Dalai tall-tower station, 0.366 mg m−3 at Sanggen Dalai ground-based station, 0.360 mg m−3 at Beijing, and 2.778 mg m−3 at Sunite Zuoqi. The average concentrations of PM10 accounted for more than 61% of TSP loadings at all stations. The average concentrations of special crustal elements (Al, Ca, Fe, Mg, Mn) in PM10 accounted for 65–86% of each of their loadings in TSP, and the average concentrations of important pollutant elements (Pb, Zn, Cu) in PM10 accounted for 63–79% of each of their loadings in TSP. During the dusty days with wind speeds rising, the aerosol mass loading severely increased, and the trend of chemical element increasing in dust particles was associated with the aerosol loading ascending. Crustal elements in aerosols were dominated by dust particles. The chemical elements of Ca, Fe, Mg, Mn and Ti in aerosols were derived more from Ca-rich soil than from sandy soil, but Ba and K were opposite. The pollutant elements of Cu, S, Pb, V and Zn associated with aerosols in Hunshan Dake Sandland were affected by the anthropogenic pollutant sources in upwind regions.