Using geoaccumulation index to study source profiles of soil dust in China

Source apportionment studies of TSP （atmospheric particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters ≤ 100 μm） and PM10 （atmospheric particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters ≤ 10 μm） have revealed that soil dust is an important source of these particulates in China. In this study, the contamination of soil dust was assessed through the use of a geoaccumulation index （Igeo）. The mass concentration profiles of 17 elements （Na, Mg, Al, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br, Ba, and Pb） were established for urban soil dusts. Geochemical compositions of soils from 15 cities were used to represent background urban soil compositions. The results of this study indicated that a number of cities are severely polluted by particulates containing Ca, Cr, Ni, and Cu in both size fractions （TSP and PM10）. Contamination with Zn, Pb, Co, and Br was moderate to severe （Igeo 〉 2）. The Al and Fe concentrations were not high enough for them to be considered contaminants.

Dust source of the Holocene loess-soil and pedogenic environmental changes in the upper Huaihe River

Based on field surveys,soil samples were collected at the YPC site,Yuzhou City,Henan Province for analysis of contents of major and trace elements and their variations with XRF and comparison with the curves of magnetic susceptibility,pH value distribution,loss on ignition and particle-size distribution.It was concluded that the dust source of loess in the upper reaches of the Huaihe River Basin was different from that in the Loess Plateau.And the Holocene pedogenic environmental changes in the upper reaches of the Huaihe River Basin were revealed.

Effects of atomization parameters of dust removal nozzles on the de-dusting results for different dust sources

In order to obtain appropriate spray pressure and enhance the spraying and dust removal efficiency, various factors including the dust characteristics, nozzle spraying angle, effective spraying range, water consumption and droplet size are taken into account. The dust characteristics from different mines and atomization parameters of different pressure nozzles were measured. It was found that the internal pressure of coal cutters and roadheaders should be kept at 2 MPa, which could ensure large droplet size, large spraying angle and low water consumption and hence realizing a large-area covering and capture for large particle dusts. However, the external spray pressure should be kept at 4 MPa for smaller droplet size and longer effective spraying range, leading to effective dust removal in the operator zone. The spray pressure of support moving, drawing opening, and stage loader on a fully mechanized caving face and stage loader on a fully mechanized driving face should be kept at 8 MPa, under which the nozzles have long effective spraying range, high water flow and small droplet size for the rapid capture of instantaneous, high-concentration and small size dust groups. From the applications on the caving and driving faces in the coal mines, it is indicated that the optimization of spray pressure in different spraying positions could effectively enhance dust removal efficiency. Selecting appropriate nozzles according to the dust characteristics at different positions is also favorable for dust removal efficiency. With the selected nozzles under optimal pressures, the removal rates of both total dust and respirable dust could reach over70%, showing a significant de-dusting effect.

Predicting of dust storm source by combining remote sensing, statistic-based predictive models and game theory in the Sistan watershed, southwestern Asia

Dust storms in arid and desert areas affect radiation budget,air quality,visibility,enzymatic activities,agricultural products and human health.Due to increased drought and land use changes in recent years,the frequency of dust storms occurrence in Iran has been increased.This study aims to identify dust source areas in the Sistan watershed(Iran-Afghanistan borders)-an important regional source for dust storms in southwestern Asia,using remote sensing(RS)and bivariate statistical models.Furthermore,this study determines the relative importance of factors controlling dust emissions using frequency ratio(FR)and weights of evidence(WOE)models and interpretability of predictive models using game theory.For this purpose,we identified 211 dust sources in the study area and generated a dust source distribution map-inventory map-by dust source potential index based on RS data.In addition,spatial maps of topographic factors affecting dust source areas including soil,lithology,slope,Normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI),geomorphology and land use were prepared.The performance of two models(WOE and FR)was evaluated using the area under curve(AUC)of the receiver operating characteristic curve.The results showed that soil,geomorphology and slope exhibited the greatest influence in the dust source areas.The 55.3%(according to FR)and 62.6%(according to WOE)of the total area were classified as high and very high potential dust sources,while both models displayed acceptable accuracy with subsurface levels of 0.704 for FR and 0.751 for WOE,although they predict different fractions of dust potential classes.Based on Shapley additive explanations(SHAP),three factors,i.e.,soil,slope and NDVI have the highest impact on the model's output.Overall,combination of statistic-based predictive models(or data mining models),RS and game theory techniques can provide accurate maps of dust source areas in arid and semi-arid regions,which can be helpful for mitigation of negative effects of dust storms.

Source,Characterization of Indoor Dust PAHs and the Health Risk on Chinese Children

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)in indoor dust are one of the common exposure sources for children worldwide.The aim of this study is to explore PAHs pollution status in indoor dust and estimate health risk on Chinese children with big data.Weighted average concentration was used to analyze source and characterization of PAHs in indoor dust based on peer=reviewed literature.According to specific inclusion crteria,17 studies were included finally to analyze weighted average concentration.The national average concentration of ∑_(16)PAHs was approximately 25.696 ug/g.The highest concentration of ∑_(16)AHs was in Shanxi(2111.667 ug/g),and the lowest was in Hong Kong(1.505 μg/g).The concentrations in Shanxi and Guangdong were higher than national level and the over standard rate was 18.18%.The concentrations of individual PAHs varied greatly across the country,and Flu in Shanxi was the highest(189.400 μg/g).The sources of PAHs varied in different regions and combustion processes played a leading role.PAHs exposure through ingestion and dermal contact was more carcinogenic than inhalation.The incremental lifetime cancer risk model indicated that children lived in Shanxi were found in the highest health risk coupled with the highest BaPE concentration(54.074μg/g).Although PAHs concentrations of indoor dust showed a downward trend from 2005 to 2018,indoor environmental sanitation should be improved with multidisciplinary efforts.Health standard should be possibly established to minimize children exposure to PAHs in indoor dust in China.

Sources of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Street Dust from the Chang-Zhu-Tan Region, Hunan, China

Street dusts collected from 20 sites as well as three special dust samples collected from chimney of coal-fired plant, smelter and refinery of nonferrous metals and automobile exhaust, respectively, in the Chang-Zhu-Tan (Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan) urban region, Hunan, China, in May to August 2009, were investigated for sources of polycylic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The ΣPAHs16 levels were in the range of 3515 - 24488 ng/g, with a mean of 8760 ng/g. The sources of PAH inputs to street dusts were determined by isomer ratios, principal components analysis and REE geochemical analysis. The isomer ratios suggested a rather uniform mixture of coal combustion and petroleum PAH sources. Factor analysis indicated that the main sources of 16 PAHs were coal combustion/vehicle exhaust and coking/ petroleum. Rare earth elements (REE) and Factor score analysis further indicated the possible dust sources were from background soil, coal or coking combustion, nonferrous metal factories, traffic exhaust.

Sand-dust storms in China: temporal-spatial distribution and tracks of source lands

Sand-dust storm is a special natural disaster that frequently occurs in deserts and their surrounding areas. With the data published onSurface Meteorological Monthly Bulletin andSurface Chart during 1971–1996, the temporal-spatial distribution and annual variation of sand-dust storms are analyzed on the basis of the case study of atmospheric processes. Furthermore, the tracks and source areas of sand-dust storms are determined with the aid of GIS. The results show that except some parts of Qinghai Province and Inner Mongolia as well as Beijing, sand-dust storms decrease apparently in time and space in recent decades in China. Sand-dust storms occur most frequently in spring, especially in April. According to their source areas, sand-dust storms are classified into two types, i.e., the inner-source and outer-source sand-dust storms. Most of the outer-source sand-dust storms move along the north and west tracks. The north-track outer-source sand-dust storms always intrude into China across the Sino-Mongolian border from Hami, a city in the eastern part ofXinjiang, to Xilin Gol, a league in Inner Mongolia, while the west-track ones intrude into China from both southern and northern Xinjiang. The source lands of inner-source sand-dust storms concentrate in the Taklimakan Desert and its surrounding areas in southern Xinjiang, southern part of the Junggar Basin in north of Xinjiang, the Hexi Corridor in western Gansu Province, the dry deserts of Inner Mongolia and the Qaidam Basin in Qinghai.

Relationship Between Land Use Changes and the Production of Dust Sources in Kermanshah Province,Iran

Recognizing land use changes(LUC)and evaluating their relationship with producing dust sources are considered effective to manage the environment.Taking Kermanshah Province,Iran as study area,dusty days from 2008 to 2015 were selected and dust sources were identified applying thermal-infrared dust index(TDI),hybrid single-particle lagrangian integrated trajectory(HYSPLIT),false color composite(FCC)and true color composite(TCC)of MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer(MODIS)images.Afterwards,the land use change map was produced using Landsat images in 2000 and 2015.Then,the distribution and frequency of the sources in each land-use change class and important dust production areas were specified.Eventually,two non-parametric tests including Chisquare and Kruskal-Wallis were applied to examine the relationship between LUC and dust sources.Results indicated that the distribution of dust sources was not identical in the study area,and the sources were mainly generated in the areas where land-use change had occurred.In fact,different classes of LUC have different contributions to dust production,and the highest contribution refers to the deflation in gentle slope areas and lowlands where the rangeland has been converted into agriculture land.The findings from this study are useful to manage and control dust in the identified sources.

Cosmic Contributions to the Deposition of Petroleum Source Rocks: Review and Analysis

The development of globally distributed Phanerozoic petroleum source rocks is concentrated on time intervals, which correlate convincingly with climatic driven glaciation epochs of Earth’s history, repeated every 150 million years, and during sea level high stands and maxima of global magmatism with a period of 300 million years. The 150 million year periodicity appears to be related to the path of the solar system through the spiral arms of the Milky Way and the 300 million year periodicity to changes of the spiral system. The spiral arms are preferred birth places of new stars, of which the larger ones have only smaller lifespans. Their preliminary deaths ended with explosions and selectively with the development of so-called white dwarfs, neutron stars or black holes. The times of the explosions of intermediate (sun-like) stars can be determined by measuring the present brightness of the dwarfs. Not surprisingly the last two maxima of recordable near solar system star explosions took place during the presumably spiral arms driven glacial epochs in Eocene to present and Upper Jurassic times. Such near solar system star explosions may have been the source of intense neutrino showers, cosmic rays and star dust. This dust contained all kinds of chemical elements, including phosphorus and uranium. Such cosmic phosphorus may have supported, through fertilizing, the distribution of life on Earth additionally to local phosphorus resources via bloom of biota in lakes and oceans and the enhanced growth of plants on land across all climatic zones. Subsequently it maintained the development of petroleum source rocks of all organic matter types within black shales and coals. Via the distribution of remnants of exploding stars—mainly white dwarfs, but neutron stars and black holes have to be counted as well—a cosmic contribution can therefore casually linked to the deposition of petroleum source rocks on Earth, not only purely correlatively by their contemporaneous appearances.

Seasonal Variations in Dustfall and Its Iron Content over North China

Extensive dustfall collections were carried out from April 2001 to May 2002 in North China. The highest level of dustfall occurred in the Gobi deserts and at the margins of sandy deserts in the region. The iron content in dustfall in North China varied from 0.6% to 6.0% and there was significant seasonal variation, which indicates the dust sources differed during the year. Although the iron content in dustfall in North China is higher in the Loess Plateau and arable lands and lower in the Gobi and sandy deserts, the total iron deposition was higher in the Gobi desert regions. If the fine particles （PM10） in dustfall in North China are the major contributors of dust transport to eastern China and western parts of the North Pacific, then the annual deposition rates of iron may have been underestimated in previous studies. Our analysis indicates that iron deposition may reach 1.38 × 10^3 to 2.43 × 10^3 kg km^-2 and that most iron deposition occurs in spring and summer. If the more-coarse fractions （PM50） are considered, deposition rates may reach 2.75 × 10^3 and 6.80 × 10^3 kg km^-2, which would represent a large source of iron deposition in eastern China and the western North Pacific.

The risk evaluation of mine coal-dust explosion based on BP neural network

Introduced the theory of three types of hazardous sources, and it recognized and analysed such three types of hazardous sources as the factor of inherent hazardous source, factor of inducing hazardous source and factor of men, which affect the safety and reliability of coal-dust explosion risk system and then builds up the risk factor indices of coal-dust explosion according to analysis of conditions inducing the coal-dust explosion. It fixes the risk degree of coal-dust explosion risk system by analyzing loss probability and loss scope of risk system and by means of the probabilistic hazard evaluation method and risk matrix method, etc.. According to the feature of strong capability of nonlinear approximation of BP neural network, the paper designed the structure of BP neural network for the risk evaluation of the mine coal-dust explosion with BP neural network. And the weight of the network was finally determined by training the given samples so that the risk degree of samples to be measured could be exactly evaluated and the risk of mine coal-dust explosion could be alarmed in good time.

Chemical characteristics of precipitation and the indicative significance for sand dust events in the northern and southern slopes of Wushaoling Mountain, northwestern China

Precipitation chemistry analysis is essential to evaluate the atmospheric environmental quality and identify the sources of atmospheric pollutants. In this study, we collected a total of 480 precipitation samples at 6 sampling sites in the northern and southern slopes of Wushaoling Mountain from May 2013 to July 2014 to analyze the chemical characteristics of precipitation and to identify the main sources of ions in precipitation. Furthermore, we also explored the indicative significance for sand dust events in the northern and southern slopes of Wushaoling Mountain based on the precipitation chemistry analysis.During the sampling period（from May 2013 to July 2014）, the p H values, EC（electrical conductivity）values and concentrations of cations（Ca^（2＋）, Mg^（2＋）, Na~＋, K~＋ and NH_4~＋） and anions（SO_4^（2–）, NO_3~–, Cl~–, NO_2~– and F~–） in precipitation were different in the northern and southern slopes at daily and seasonal time scales, with most of the values being higher in the northern slope than in the southern slope. The chemical type of precipitation in the southern and northern slopes was the same, i.e.,SO_4^（2–）-Ca^（2＋）-NO_3~–-Na~＋. The concentrations of ions in precipitation were mainly controlled by terrigenous material and anthropogenic activities（with an exception of Cl~–）. The concentration of Cl~– in precipitation was mainly controlled by the sea salt fraction. The concentrations of Na＋ and Cl~– showed an increasing trend after the occurrence of sand dust events both in the northern and southern slopes. In addition, after the occurrence of sand dust events, the concentrations of K~＋, Mg^（2＋）, SO_4^（2–）, NO_3~– and Ca^（2＋） showed an increasing trend in the southern slope and a decreasing trend in the northern slope. It is our hope that the results may be helpful to further understand the atmospheric pollution caused by sand dust events in the Wushaoling Mountain and can also provide a scientific basis for the effective prevention of atmospheric pollution.

Assessment of Road Dust Contamination in India

The road dusts (RD) are fugitive in nature causing potential health hazards to people living in highways. They are generated from different sources on the roads and being a valuable archive of environmental information. In the present work, contamination assessment of 18 heavy metals and ions in road dusts of the country are described. Techniques i.e. ion selective, ion chromatography and atomic absorption spectrophotometers were used for analysis of the ions and metals. The content of F-, Cl-, , , , Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, As, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb and Hg in the road dusts was ranged from 75 - 895, 276 - 12718, 48 - 1423, 243 - 10,580, 11 - 539, 290 - 46,484, 110 - 7716, 84 - 1771, 595 - 15,955, 24 - 42, 164 - 526, 1711 - 5218, 63,850 - 144,835, 47 - 62, 81 - 720, 166 - 450, 92 - 295 and 0.05 - 0.12 mg/kg with mean value of 224 ± 43, 3734 ± 895, 592 ± 895, 2859 ± 662, 143 ± 29, 4826 ± 2049, 1565 ± 411, 837 ± 121, 8545 ± 1288, 31 ± 4, 246 ± 82, 3002 ± 851, 91,331 ± 18,587, 54 ± 4, 206 ± 145, 241 ± 64, 171 ± 42 and 0.08 ± 0.02 mg/kg, respectively (at 95% probability). The enrichment, variation, correlation and sources of the contaminants are discussed.

Numerical Modeling of Dust Propagation in the Atmosphere of a City with Complex Terrain. The Case of Background Eastern Light Air

Micro-scale processes of dust distribution in the city of Tbilisi with very complex topography are modeled using a 3D regional model of atmospheric processes and numerical integration of the transport-diffusion equation of the impurity. The Terrain-following coordinate system is used to take into account the influence of a very complex relief on the process of atmospheric pollution. Modeling is carried out using horizontal grid steps of 300 m and 400 m along latitude and longitude, respectively. Cases of the stationary background eastern light air are considered. In the model, motor transport is considered as a nonstationary source of pollution from which dust is emitted into the atmosphere. Modeling of dust micro-scale diffusion process showed that the city air pollution depends on the spatial distribution of the main sources of city pollution, i.e. on vehicle traffic intensity, as well as on the spatial distribution of highways, and micro-orography of city and relief of the surrounding territories. It is shown that the dust pollution level in the surface layer of the atmosphere is minimal at 6 a.m. Ground-level concentration rapidly grows with the increase of vehicle traffic intensity and at 12 a.m. reaches maximum allowable concentration (MAC = 0.5 mg/m3) in the vicinity of central city mains. From 12 a.m. to 9 p.m. maximum dust concentration values are within the limits of 0.9 - 1.2 MAC. In the mentioned time interval formation of the high pollution zones, the slow growth of their areas and the value of ground-level concentrations take place. These zones are located in both central and peripheral parts of the city. Their disposition and area sizes depend on the spatial distribution of local wind-generated under the action of complex terrain, as well as on the processes of turbulent and advective dust transfer. From 9 p.m. to 24 p.m. reduction of dust pollution and ground-level concentration takes place. After midnight the city dust pollution process continues quasi-periodically.

Individual Aerosol Particles Emitted in the Ceramic-Tile Industry in Chihuahua, Mexico

The contribution of anthropogenic mineral aerosol dust has been of interest to understand the impact of dust aerosols on climate, and the health of workers occupational exposure. Several studies have been investigated the physical and chemical properties mainly in particulate matter. However, the characterizations have not extended diameters below to 1.0 μm. In this study, it described chemical composition and shape measurements of individual aerosol particles with 50% cut-off diameters less than 1.1 μm emitted at ceramic-tile manufacturing. Four emission sites of process were selected, and their samples were collected using a cascade-impactor, investigated using X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and digital image processing, where the data were analysed applying a combination of principal component and cluster analysis. Particles of tectosilicate （quartz, zeolite）, phyllosilicate （illite, montmorillonite）, and inosilicate （calcium silicate） were founded in all sampling sites; also, silicates mixed with transition metals oxides used as pigments （e.g., Fe, Ti, Co, Ni, Zn and Mo）. Silicates were granulated and flat crystals with a transparent, translucent appearance; otherwise, the mixture had flake shapes and opaque appearance. Analyses of multivariate data showed that the process stages emissions were related with specific composition and shape suggesting the use three measurements related （1） the internal axis, （2） roundness and （3） roughness to isolate particles shapes, and the presence of transition metals oxides as emissions tracer of the ceramic industry.

The Dust Comportment in the Latitudinal Band 10°North - 20°North in Africa: Emission and Deposition

The three measurement periods: the TOMS Nimbus-7 TOMSN7L3 v008 from 1978 to 1993, the TOMS EP TOMSEPL3 v008 from 1996 to 2005 and the OMI OMTO3d v003 from 2004 to 2008 have allowed the presence of dust to be observed in the 10°North to 20°North latitudinal band (10 - 20 band) of Africa. The 10 - 20 band has a permanent dust presence. The AERONET data show AOD peaks exceeding 2 in Senegal and Niger (on an AOD scale). The statistical study reveals intra-annual relationships in deposition. In Senegal, a significant deposition is observed.

Territorial Features of Atmospheric Environment in Beijing and Impact of Dust-storm

The territorial features of the atmospheric environment in Beijing were described in detail, and the transportation pathways of the atmosphere pollutants were found by the dot aggregation in the form of the meshwork. The concept on convergence belt of the atmosphere pollutants was given. The vertical distribution of the atmospheric pollutants in Beijing was detected by the laser techniques, showing an interrelationship between the quality of atmospheric environment in Beijing and the pollution sources in the neighboring areas of Beijing. The sand dust storms in the North China would also impact on the quality of the atmospheric environment of Beijing, so the phenomena of sand dust storm in China were studied by both satellite inspection technology and analysis of atmospheric flow fields. According to the distributions of sand dust storm sources to impact on the air environment in China, the sand dust storm sources were divided into two parts, one is the inner sources inside China, and the other is the outer sources outside China. The sand dust sources inside China were situated in the desert and Gobi in the Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang autonomous regions. The sand dust sources outside China were situated in the desert and Gobi in Russia,Hazakhstan and Mongolia. A very strong sand dust storm taken place on the 20th Mar, 2002 is given as an exa\|mple.

坝上地区察汗淖尔流域盐尘暴形成风险研究

近年来,位于冀蒙交界处的察汗淖尔日渐干涸,有成为盐尘暴策源地的风险,这引起了人们的高度关注和普遍担忧。盐尘污染治理的重要前提是确定盐尘暴的形成区域。作者通过调查取样和遥感解译,对察汗淖尔流域表层土壤盐渍化程度和植被覆盖进行了全面分析,确定了察汗淖尔流域盐尘暴形成的主要潜在区域,并进行了盐尘源风险等级划分。结果表明,察汗淖尔流域土壤盐渍化程度呈现中间高,四周低的趋势。流域内植被覆盖状况总体较好,东南部总体优于西北部,但干涸湖心仅有零星植被。干涸湖心及其周边区域不仅表土盐分含量高,植被覆盖状况也较差,发生严重风蚀可能性较大,是盐尘暴形成的中高风险区。流域的其他区域或者土壤盐分含量低,或者植被盖度高,盐尘暴形成风险较低。该研究结果为掌握察汗淖尔,乃至坝上地区其他干涸湖盆盐尘源分布特征,并采取针对性的防治措施提供了重要参考。

煤矿综掘工作面长压短抽除尘性能与尘源移动路径关系

长压短抽通风除尘是净化煤矿综掘工作面掘进区域高质量浓度粉尘的有效方法之一,特别是压抽配合产生的局部流场有利于对呼吸性粉尘的除降,而产尘源位置的动态变化对该方式除尘性能的影响不甚明晰。通过考虑产尘源位置沿横、纵2种方向的运动路径及往复次数,基于长压短抽试验平台设计了4种尘源移动路径,结合对长压短抽通风系统参数的调控,测试分析尘源在不同运动工况下对空间粉尘质量浓度、粉尘粒径质量浓度和粒径分布的影响。结果表明:在相同的通风参数下,横向路径对司机和行人呼吸带位置造成的粉尘质量浓度均低于纵向;而在横向路径中,当压风筒位于靠近抽风筒一侧且压风口位于司机前方约1 m区域时,司机与行人呼吸带位置的PM1、PM2.5和PM10粉尘粒径质量浓度最低,通风除尘效果最好。空间粉尘扩散表现为:粒径小于2.5µm的颗粒极易跟随抽风流场被抽尘口收集净化,而粒径大于10µm的颗粒则会从产尘源和抽尘区域逃逸到司机及其后方区域,并以自然沉降为主。基于前期试验所得最优尘源移动路径与通风参数,在陕北某煤矿2304综掘工作面开展现场试验。结果表明:横向路径下司机位置和行人呼吸带位置的总粉尘质量浓度分别降低至85.6 mg/m^(3)和21.9 mg/m^(3),降尘率最高达到76.9%;呼吸性粉尘质量浓度分别降低至15.3 mg/m^(3)和10.5 mg/m^(3),降尘率最高达到85.2%,除尘性能明显提升。