Source identification of PM_(10) aerosol samples by ACCU sampler and PIXE technique

The samples of PM_(10) inhalable particulate matter with eight directions of wind had been collected at a representative site of Wu Song industrial district in Shanghai in winter using Automated Cartridge Collection Unit (ACCU) of Rupprecht Patashnick Co. The samples were analyzed to determine the average concentrations of eighteen elements by means of the Proton Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE). The results showed that the mass distribution of particulate matter in different directions depends on the environmental air quality. As the elemental fingerprint study of environmental pollution, spatial variation of elemental concentrations was closely related with the residential dense, the vehicle traffic, and the exhausts of refineries, chemicals and steel factories around the sampling site. It was demonstrated that the excellent combination of ACCU sampler and PIXE technique provided a fast and accurate means for environmental source detected.