Characterization of PAHs and n-Alkanes in Atmospheric Aerosol of Jamshedpur City, India

Abstract

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and n-alkanes are determined in atmospheric aerosol samples collected from an academic campus, Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology, Jamshedpur, India. The sampling work carried out for the present study was carried from June to September 2018. The maximum concentration of PAHs and n-alkanes was observed to be 6.02 ng/m3 (June) and 23.02 ng/m3 (September), and the minimum concentration was observed to be 5.36 ng/m3 (July) and 10.13 ng/m3 (June), respectively. The average concentration level of ∑17 n-alkanes and ∑13 PAHs was estimated to be 15.62±5.51 and 5.69±0.33 ng/m3, respectively, during the study periods. To better understand the ring variations in PAHs, it was found that the concentration of four-ring PAHs was 35.28%, that of five-ring PAHs was 34.18%, that of six-ring PAHs was 22.76%, and that of three-ring PAHs was 7.78%. Phenanthrene (Phn) was the most abundant PAH with fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the study. The concentration level of PAHs and n-alkanes varied with season. Pearson’s correlation coefficient method was applied for source apportionment of PAHs and n-alkanes. It was reported by using principal component correlation (PCC) that the source of emissions may be industrial activity, automobiles, wood, coal, or dung cake burning.