Autores: Alberto A. Espinosa, Javier Miranda, Enrique Hernández, Javier Reyes, Ana L. Alarcón, María C. Torres & Rodolfo Sosa*

* Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales | Contaminación Ambiental

Abstract

study of temporal variations of particulate matter in different size fractions (TSP, PM₁₀, PM_2.5) was undertaken in the city of San Francisco de Campeche (SFC), in southeast Mexico, in the years 2014 and 2015 in order to assess the contribution of the chemical components. The samples were analyzed using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and ion exchange chromatography (IC) for PM₁₀. XRF identified the presence of Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn. The results of a cluster analysis (CA) indicates a strong correlation of S and P in the three fractions due to agricultural land use and this may be related to the burning of biomass during the dry season. Also the CA also suggests that the elements Al, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Mn, and Fe can be associated with a geological origin. The results of the IC analysis show high levels of Na⁺, Cl⁻, and SO₄⁻² and the latter must be related to anthropogenic sources. The application of principal components analysis (PCA) suggests that Na⁺, Cl⁻ and Mg⁺² are associated with marine aerosols; NO₃⁻ and SO₄⁻² are from emissions related to fuel combustion due to increase in the number of motor vehicles in the city.