Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published October 15, 1999 | public
Journal Article

Size and Composition Distribution of Fine Particulate Matter Emitted from Wood Burning, Meat Charbroiling, and Cigarettes

Abstract

A dilution source sampling system is augmented to measure the size-distributed chemical composition of fine particle emissions from air pollution sources. Measurements are made using a laser optical particle counter (OPC), a differential mobility analyzer/condensation nucleus counter (DMA/CNC) combination, and a pair of microorifice uniform deposit impactors (MOUDIs). The sources tested with this system include wood smoke (pine, oak, eucalyptus), meat charbroiling, and cigarettes. The particle mass distributions from all wood smoke sources have a single mode that peaks at approximately 0.1−0.2 μm particle diameter. The smoke from meat charbroiling shows a major peak in the particle mass distribution at 0.1−0.2 μm particle diameter, with some material present at larger particle sizes. Particle mass distributions from cigarettes peak between 0.3 and 0.4 μm particle diameter. Chemical composition analysis reveals that particles emitted from the sources tested here are largely composed of organic compounds. Noticeable concentrations of elemental carbon are found in the particles emitted from wood burning. The size distributions of the trace species emissions from these sources also are presented, including data for Na, K, Ti, Fe, Br, Ru, Cl, Al, Zn, Ba, Sr, V, Mn, Sb, La, Ce, as well as sulfate, nitrate, and ammonium ion when present in statistically significant amounts. These data are intended for use with air quality models that seek to predict the size distribution of the chemical composition of atmospheric fine particles.

Additional Information

© 1999 American Chemical Society. Received for review December 8, 1998. Revised manuscript received July 6, 1999. Accepted July 20, 1999. This research was supported by the Caltech Center for Air Quality Analysis. Thanks are due to Dr. Kent Hoekman and Dr. Steve Ziman of Chevron for assistance with this research. Thanks are also due to Bob Cary (Sunset Labs) for aerosol carbon analyses; Ilhan Olmez, Michael Ames, and Jec Gone (MIT) for neutron activation analysis of trace elements; Lynn Salmon (Caltech) for ion chromatography/colorimetric analyses; and Lee Reavis, Debbie Walker, and Chef Jorge Amador (Total Food Management) for their help in conducting the meat charbroiling source tests.

Additional details

Created:
August 19, 2023
Modified:
October 18, 2023