Airborne particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) pollution in a background site in the North China Plain: Concentration, size distribution, toxicity and sources

The size-fractionated characteristics of particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were studied from January 2011 to October 2011 using a Micro-orifice Uniform Deposit Impactor (MOUDI) at the Yellow River Delta National Nature Reserve (YRDNNR), a background site located in the North China Plain. The average annual concentration of total PAHs in the YRDNNR (18.95 ± 16.51 ng/m3) was lower than that in the urban areas of China; however, it was much higher than that in other rural or remote sites in developed countries. The dominant PAHs, which were found in each season, were fluorene (5.93%-26.80%), phenanthrene (8.17%-26.52%), fluoranthene (15.23%-27.12%) and pyrene (9.23%-16.31%). A bimodal distribution was found for 3-ring PAHs with peaks at approximately 1.0-1.8 μm and 3.2-5.6 μm; however, 4-6 ring PAHs followed a nearly unimodal distribution, with the highest peak in the 1.0-1.8 μm range. The mass median diameter (MMD) values for the total PAHs averaged 1.404, 1.467, 1.218 and 0.931 μm in spring, summer, autumn and winter, respectively. The toxicity analysis indicated that the carcinogenic potency of particulate PAHs existed primarily in the < 1.8 μm size range. Diagnostic ratios and PCA analysis indicated that the PAHs in aerosol particles were mainly derived from coal combustion. In addition, back-trajectory calculations demonstrated that atmospheric PAHs were produced primarily by local anthropogenic sources.