Fractionation, Characterization, and Analysis of Nano- and Microparticles in the Estimation of the Contribution of a Metallurgical Enterprise to the Pollution of Urban Dust
M. S. Ermolin, Petr S. Fedotov, В. К. Карандашев, R. Kh. Dzhenloda, Alexandr I. Ivaneev, T. V. Burkat, V. S. Burkat
Abstract
The study and analysis of dust nano- and microparticles are necessary in the estimation of anthropogenic load on the environment and the determination of the sources of pollution in urban ecosystems. In this work, an approach based on a multistage membrane filtration method is proposed for assessing the contribution of a metallurgical enterprise to the pollution of nano- and microparticles in urban dust. The contribution of an aluminum smelter to dust pollution in Kandalaksha was estimated. The elemental composition of the initial dust samples was studied. The fractions of dust particles with sizes of <0.45, 0.45–2.5, and 2.5–10 μm were separated, characterized, and analyzed. The degrees of contamination of the dust samples and their size fractions were estimated based on the calculated dust enrichment factors (Ke) for elements characteristic of an aluminum smelter. A noticeable contribution (7.4%) of the smelter to dust pollution outside its territory was detected only in one of the test samples taken 200 m from the border of a sanitary protection zone of the enterprise. It was found that insignificant pollution was characteristic of urban dust size fractions of 0.45–2.5 and 2.5–10 μm (Ke 1.1–1.8). A contribution of the plant to pollution was not observed in a particle fraction of <0.45 μm (Ke 0.8–1.0).