Wood burning pollution in southern Chile: PM2.5source apportionment using CMB and molecular markers.
Temuco is a mid-size city representative of severe wood smoke pollution in southern Chile; i.e., ambient 24-h PM2.5concentrations have exceeded 150 μg/m3in the winter season and the top concentration reached 372 μg/m3in 2010. Annual mean concentrations have decreased but are still above 30 μg/m3. For the very first time, a molecular marker source apportionment of ambient organic carbon (OC) and PM2.5was conducted in Temuco. Primary resolved sources for PM2.5were wood smoke (37.5%), coal combustion (4.4%), diesel vehicles (3.3%), dust (2.2%) and vegetative detritus (0.7%). Secondary inorganic PM2.5(sulfates, nitrates and ammonium) contributed 4.8% and unresolved organic aerosols (generated from volatile emissions from incomplete wood combustion), including secondary organic aerosols, contributed 47.1%. Adding the contributions of unresolved organic aerosols to those from primary wood smoke implies that wood burning is responsible for 84.6% of the ambient PM2.5in Temuco. This predominance of wood smoke is ultimately due to widespread poverty and a lack of efficient household heating methods. The government has been implementing emission abatement policies but achieving compliance with ambient air quality standards for PM2.5in southern Chile remains a challenge.
Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Bioprocesos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Avda. Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Santiago 7820436, Chile; Dirección de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica UC (DICTUC), Avda. Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Santiago 7820436, Chile.
Ana M
AM
Villalobos
Instituto de Geografía, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Avda. Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Santiago 7820436, Chile.
Francisco
F
Barraza
Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Bioprocesos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Avda. Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Santiago 7820436, Chile. Electronic address: jorquera@ing.puc.cl.
Héctor
H
Jorquera
Environmental Chemistry and Technology Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 660 North Park Street, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
James J
JJ
Schauer
D000336:Aerosols / Q000032:analysis; D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D002677:Chile; D002947:Cities; D003031:Coal; D004391:Dust; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005390:Fires; D006361:Heating; D009566:Nitrates / Q000032:analysis; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000032:analysis*; D012621:Seasons; D012906:Smoke; D013431:Sulfates / Q000032:analysis; D014934:Wood / Q000737:chemistry
D000336:Aerosols; D000393:Air Pollutants; D003031:Coal; D004391:Dust; D009566:Nitrates; D052638:Particulate Matter; D012906:Smoke; D013431:Sulfates
CMB-MM; Fuel poverty; Source apportionment; Southern Chile; Sustainable urban development; Wood burning