Sources and atmospheric processing of winter aerosols in Seoul, Korea: Insights from real-Time measurements using a high-resolution aerosol mass spectrometer

Abstract

Highly time-resolved chemical characterization of nonrefractory submicrometer particulate matter (NR-PM1) was conducted in Seoul, the capital and largest metropolis of Korea, using an Aerodyne high-resolution time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (HR-ToF-AMS). The measurements were performed during winter, when elevated particulate matter (PM) pollution events are often observed. This is the first time that detailed real-Time aerosol measurement results have been reported from Seoul, Korea, and they reveal valuable insights into the sources and atmospheric processes that contribute to PM pollution in this region. The average concentration of submicron aerosol (PM1 Combining double low line ĝ€NR-PM1+ĝ€black carbon (BC)) was 27.5ĝ€μgĝ€†mĝ'3, and the total mass was dominated by organics (44ĝ€%), followed by nitrate (24ĝ€%) and sulfate (10ĝ€%). The average atomic ratios of oxygen to carbon (Oĝ€/ĝ€C), hydrogen to carbon (Hĝ€/ĝ€C), and nitrogen to carbon (Nĝ€/ĝ€C) of organic aerosols (OA) were 0.37, 1.79, and 0.018, respectively, which result in an average organic mass-To-carbon (OMĝ€/ĝ€OC) ratio of 1.67. The concentrations (2.6-90.7ĝ€μgĝ€†mĝ'3) and composition of PM1 varied dynamically during the measurement period due to the influences of different meteorological conditions, emission sources, and air mass origins. Five distinct sources of OA were identified via positive matrix factorization (PMF) analysis of the HR-ToF-AMS data: vehicle emissions represented by a hydrocarbon-like OA factor (HOA, Oĝ€/ĝ€Cĝ€ Combining double low line ĝ€0.06), cooking activities represented by a cooking OA factor (COA, Oĝ€/ĝ€Cĝ€ Combining double low line ĝ€0.14), wood combustion represented by a biomass burning OA factor (BBOA, Oĝ€/ĝ€Cĝ€ Combining double low line ĝ€0.34), and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) represented by a semivolatile oxygenated OA factor (SV-OOA, Oĝ€/ĝ€Cĝ€ Combining double low line 0.56) and a low-volatility oxygenated OA factor (LV-OOA, Oĝ€/ĝ€C Combining double low line 0.68). On average, primary OA (POA Combining double low line HOA + COA + BBOA) accounted for 59ĝ€% the OA mass, whereas SV-OOA and LV-OOA contributed 15 and 26ĝ€%, respectively. Our results indicate that air quality in Seoul during winter is influenced strongly by secondary aerosol formation, with sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, SV-OOA, and LV-OOA together accounting for 64ĝ€% of the PM1 mass during this study. However, aerosol sources and composition were found to be significantly different between clean and polluted periods. During stagnant periods with low wind speed (WS) and high relative humidity (RH), PM concentration was generally high (averageĝ€±1 σ Combining double low line 43.6 ± 12.4ĝ€μgĝ€†mĝ'3) with enhanced fractions of nitrate (27ĝ€%) and SV-OOA (8ĝ€%), which suggested a strong influence from local production of secondary aerosol. Low-PM loading periods (12.6 ± 7.1ĝ€μgĝ€†mĝ'3) tended to occur under higher-WS and lower-RH conditions and appeared to be more strongly influenced by regional air masses, as indicated by higher mass fractions of sulfate (12ĝ€%) and LV-OOA (20ĝ€%) in PM1. Overall, our results indicate that PM pollutants in urban Korea originate from complex emission sources and atmospheric processes and that their concentrations and composition are controlled by various factors, including meteorological conditions, local anthropogenic emissions, and upwind sources.