Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment
Vehicle traffic pollution requires complex physicochemical analysis besides emission level measuring. The current study is focused on two campaigns of emissions measurements held in May and September 2019 in Alba Iulia City, Romania. There was found a significant excess of PM<sub>2.5</sub&g...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Atmosphere |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/14/5/862 |
| _version_ | 1797601097408315392 |
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| author | Marcel Rusca Tiberiu Rusu Simona Elena Avram Doina Prodan Gertrud Alexandra Paltinean Miuta Rafila Filip Irina Ciotlaus Petru Pascuta Tudor Andrei Rusu Ioan Petean |
| author_facet | Marcel Rusca Tiberiu Rusu Simona Elena Avram Doina Prodan Gertrud Alexandra Paltinean Miuta Rafila Filip Irina Ciotlaus Petru Pascuta Tudor Andrei Rusu Ioan Petean |
| author_sort | Marcel Rusca |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Vehicle traffic pollution requires complex physicochemical analysis besides emission level measuring. The current study is focused on two campaigns of emissions measurements held in May and September 2019 in Alba Iulia City, Romania. There was found a significant excess of PM<sub>2.5</sub> for all measuring points and PM<sub>10</sub> for the most circulated points during May, along with significant VOC and CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. September measurements reveal threshold excess for all PM along with increased values for VOC and CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. These are the consequences of the complex environmental interaction of the traffic. Street dust and air-suspended particle samples were collected and analyzed to evidence the PM<sub>2.5</sub> and PM<sub>10</sub> sources. Physicochemical investigation reveals highly mineralized particulate matter: PM<sub>2.5</sub> fractions within air-suspended particle samples predominantly contain Muscovite, Kaolinite, and traces of Quartz and Calcite, while PM<sub>10</sub> fractions within air-suspended particle samples predominantly contain Quartz and Calcite. These mineral fractions originate in street dust and are suspended in the atmosphere due to the vehicles’ circulation. A significant amount of soot was found as small micro-sized clusters in PM<sub>2.5</sub> and fine micro-spots attached over PM<sub>10</sub> particles, as observed by Mineralogical Optical Microscopy (MOM) and Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). GC-MS analysis found over 53 volatile compounds on the investigated floating particles that are related to the combustion gases, such as saturated alkanes, cycloalkanes, esters, and aromatic hydrocarbons. It proves a VOC contamination of the measured particulate matters that make them more hazardous for the health. Viable strategies for vehicle traffic-related pollutants mitigation would be reducing the street dust occurrence and usage of modern catalyst filters of the combustion gas exhausting system. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T03:57:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-63911e21263d48d8a0fa2aafbc7d3804 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4433 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T03:57:38Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Atmosphere |
| spelling | doaj.art-63911e21263d48d8a0fa2aafbc7d38042023-11-18T00:25:57ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332023-05-0114586210.3390/atmos14050862Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban EnvironmentMarcel Rusca0Tiberiu Rusu1Simona Elena Avram2Doina Prodan3Gertrud Alexandra Paltinean4Miuta Rafila Filip5Irina Ciotlaus6Petru Pascuta7Tudor Andrei Rusu8Ioan Petean9Faculty of Materials and Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, 400641 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaFaculty of Materials and Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, 400641 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaFaculty of Materials and Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, 400641 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaRaluca Ripan Institute for Research in Chemistry, Babeș-Bolyai University, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaRaluca Ripan Institute for Research in Chemistry, Babeș-Bolyai University, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaRaluca Ripan Institute for Research in Chemistry, Babeș-Bolyai University, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaRaluca Ripan Institute for Research in Chemistry, Babeș-Bolyai University, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaFaculty of Materials and Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, 400641 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaFaculty of Materials and Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, 400641 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaFaculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Babes-Bolyai University, 400028 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaVehicle traffic pollution requires complex physicochemical analysis besides emission level measuring. The current study is focused on two campaigns of emissions measurements held in May and September 2019 in Alba Iulia City, Romania. There was found a significant excess of PM<sub>2.5</sub> for all measuring points and PM<sub>10</sub> for the most circulated points during May, along with significant VOC and CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. September measurements reveal threshold excess for all PM along with increased values for VOC and CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. These are the consequences of the complex environmental interaction of the traffic. Street dust and air-suspended particle samples were collected and analyzed to evidence the PM<sub>2.5</sub> and PM<sub>10</sub> sources. Physicochemical investigation reveals highly mineralized particulate matter: PM<sub>2.5</sub> fractions within air-suspended particle samples predominantly contain Muscovite, Kaolinite, and traces of Quartz and Calcite, while PM<sub>10</sub> fractions within air-suspended particle samples predominantly contain Quartz and Calcite. These mineral fractions originate in street dust and are suspended in the atmosphere due to the vehicles’ circulation. A significant amount of soot was found as small micro-sized clusters in PM<sub>2.5</sub> and fine micro-spots attached over PM<sub>10</sub> particles, as observed by Mineralogical Optical Microscopy (MOM) and Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). GC-MS analysis found over 53 volatile compounds on the investigated floating particles that are related to the combustion gases, such as saturated alkanes, cycloalkanes, esters, and aromatic hydrocarbons. It proves a VOC contamination of the measured particulate matters that make them more hazardous for the health. Viable strategies for vehicle traffic-related pollutants mitigation would be reducing the street dust occurrence and usage of modern catalyst filters of the combustion gas exhausting system.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/14/5/862PM<sub>2.5</sub>PM<sub>10</sub>volatile organic compoundsphysicochemical analysis |
| spellingShingle | Marcel Rusca Tiberiu Rusu Simona Elena Avram Doina Prodan Gertrud Alexandra Paltinean Miuta Rafila Filip Irina Ciotlaus Petru Pascuta Tudor Andrei Rusu Ioan Petean Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment Atmosphere PM<sub>2.5</sub> PM<sub>10</sub> volatile organic compounds physicochemical analysis |
| title | Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment |
| title_full | Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment |
| title_fullStr | Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment |
| title_short | Physicochemical Assessment of the Road Vehicle Traffic Pollution Impact on the Urban Environment |
| title_sort | physicochemical assessment of the road vehicle traffic pollution impact on the urban environment |
| topic | PM<sub>2.5</sub> PM<sub>10</sub> volatile organic compounds physicochemical analysis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/14/5/862 |
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