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Occurrence and Concentration Levels of Nitro-PAH in the Air of Three Brazilian Cities Experiencing Different Emission Impacts

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Abstract

Nitrated Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (NPAH) were determined in the suspended particulates collected in São Paulo (Brazil) and three other cities lying in the São Paulo State, (namely, Araraquara, Piracicaba and Paulínia), during August 2002 and July 2003. São Paulo samples represented a big difference between two groups of days, one of which characterized by heavy injection of pollutants released by industrial and agricultural activities. Most NPAH congeners identified in the atmosphere were among those usually associated to diesel exhaust, with the three important exceptions of 2-nitrofluoranthene, 2- and 4-nitropyrene. Daytime reactions seemed to promote decomposition of primary fluoranthene and pyrene. Trends of NPAH at all sites seemed to be associated to regional transport of polluted air through air masses passing over sugar cane plantations of São Paulo State.

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Acknowledgement

The authors thank FAPESP, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo for its financial support through the Project 2001/01763-0.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Lineu Prestes, 748, São Paulo, Brazil

    Pérola de Castro Vasconcellos

  2. Instituto de Astronomia, Geofísica e Ciências Atmosféricas, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, 1226, São Paulo, Brazil

    Odon Sanchez-Ccoyllo

  3. Istituto sull’Inquinamento Atmosferico, Monterotondo Scalo, RM, Italy

    Catia Balducci, Rosanna Mabilia & Angelo Cecinato

Authors
  1. Pérola de Castro Vasconcellos
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  2. Odon Sanchez-Ccoyllo
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  3. Catia Balducci
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  4. Rosanna Mabilia
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  5. Angelo Cecinato
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Correspondence to Pérola de Castro Vasconcellos.

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de Castro Vasconcellos, P., Sanchez-Ccoyllo, O., Balducci, C. et al. Occurrence and Concentration Levels of Nitro-PAH in the Air of Three Brazilian Cities Experiencing Different Emission Impacts. Water Air Soil Pollut 190, 87–94 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-007-9582-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-007-9582-y

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