Quasi Real-Time X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometer in Source Apportionment of Particulate Matter in a Typical Suburban Area

The article studies the data from a weekly campaign devoted to the study of the elemental composition of PM10 in a selected receptor, in a suburban area (Mazowieckie Voivodeship). The sampling point was located at the intersection of main roads and in the vicinity of a typical single-family housing, not far from the electrified Warsaw-Białystok railway line and a small heating plant. The research was carried out in the summer season, in order to minimize the impact of municipal emissions on the concentrations and elemental composition of PM10. A Horiba PX-375 X-ray fluorescence spectrometer was used to measure the one-hour concentrations of elements related to PM10. On the basis of the obtained results, the enrichment factors for PM10 in the analyzed elements (EF) were calculated and the principal components analysis (PCA) was performed. It was found that although the elemental composition of PM10 in all tested time intervals was noticeably influenced by the emissions from transport, the municipal emissions had a significant impact on the elemental composition, especially those related to coal combustion, and thus the concentration of PM10 during the study period. It seems that the possibility of observing the influence of all relevant sources on the composition and concentration of PM10 was possible owing to the use of hourly-averaged measurements of the elemental composition of PM10. In the case of daily averaged measurements, in a receptor with such PM10 elemental profile, it would be impossible to determine the periods, in which specific – qualitatively completely different – emission sources dominate.