1. Origin of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other organic pollutants in the air particles of subway stations in Barcelona
- Author
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María Cruz Minguillón, Barend L. van Drooge, Xavier Querol, Teresa Moreno, Cristina Reche, Joan O. Grimalt, Raimon M. Prats, European Commission, Van Drooge, Barend L. [0000-0002-6434-3390], Prats, Raimon M. [0000-0002-4312-3540], Reche, Cristina [0000-0002-3387-3989], Minguillón, María Cruz [0000-0002-5464-0391], Querol, Xavier [0000-0002-6549-9899], Grimalt, Joan O. [0000-0002-7391-5768], Moreno, Teresa [0000-0003-3235-1027], Van Drooge, Barend L., Prats, Raimon M., Reche, Cristina, Minguillón, María Cruz, Querol, Xavier, Grimalt, Joan O., and Moreno, Teresa
- Subjects
Environmental Engineering ,Source apportionment ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Indoor air ,010501 environmental sciences ,01 natural sciences ,law.invention ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,Air pollutants ,law ,TRACER ,11. Sustainability ,Environmental Chemistry ,Cities ,Particle Size ,Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons ,Waste Management and Disposal ,Air quality index ,Railroads ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Pollutant ,Subways ,Air Pollutants ,Levoglucosan ,PAH ,Particulates ,Pollution ,6. Clean water ,chemistry ,13. Climate action ,Spain ,Environmental chemistry ,Air Pollution, Indoor ,Ventilation (architecture) ,Air quality ,Environmental science ,PM 2.5 ,Particulate Matter ,Environmental Monitoring - Abstract
Underground subways transport large numbers of citizens in big cities, which must breathe air with limited ventilation. These atmospheric conditions may enhance the concentration of air pollutants from both outdoor and indoor air. The influence of ventilation conditions and maintenance activities on the concentrations of air pollutants have been studied. Particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter smaller than 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ) in indoor air was sampled in ten platforms of nine subway stations of the metropolitan area of Barcelona in 2015 and 2016. These particles were analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and organic tracer compounds. The concentrations of PAH were in the range of the street air levels with higher PAH values in the colder period. No influence of nighttime maintenance activities was observed on the platform air quality during daytime. Source apportionment analysis using the concentrations of hopanes, nicotine and levoglucosan as molecular tracer compounds showed that 75% of the detected PAH at the platforms have an outdoor PM origin. The modern subway stations, with advanced ventilation and platform screen doors that separate the subway system from the platform, showed lowest PAH and PM concentrations. © 2018, This study was supported by the IMPROVE LIFE project (LIFE13 ENV/ES/000263) and the European Union Seventh Framework Programme projects NEUROSOME (H2020-MSA-ITN-2017-766251) and HEALS (FP7-ENV-2013-603946) and supported by the Generalitat de Catalunya SGR AGAUR. The authors would like to thank the Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona staff who helped in the sampling campaigns.
- Published
- 2018