Speciation of arsenic: a case study of PM1 in Zabrze

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine ambient concentrations of soluble, inorganic form of As ((As(III) and As(V)) in submicron atmospheric particles (PM1) in one of the most polluted region of Europe (Upper Silesia, Poland). Quantitative analyses of soluble As, soluble As (III) and As (V) after chromatographic separation and total As in digested PM1 samples were performed on the Elan 6100 DRC-e ICP-MS spectrometer. Results of analysis of the 15 randomly selected daily samples of PM1 from summer to winter season were presented. We showed that As(V) is dominating soluble, inorganic form of As in ambient air of selected city in Upper Silesia (Zabrze). Ambient concentrations of As(III) and As(V) as well as their mass percentages in water-soluble and total As changed seasonally. In winter season, when emissions from coal combustion prevailed, ambient concentration of soluble As(V) was about three times higher than in summer and accounted for 55% of total As. Ambient mass of As(III) was about 3.7% of the total As mass. During summer, when the sources of As may be more differentiated (industry, traffic, secondary emission from some surfaces, e.g., soils, roads, farmlands and dumps), soluble As(V) accounted for 23% of total As while soluble As(III) 6.7%.