Size-segregated ionic species in aerosol samples collected at urban city center of Bolu

It has been shown in the literature that particulate matter (PM) chemical composition is responsible for higher warming rate at Eastern Mediterranean including our country. PM composition does not only impact climate change in the region but also public health adversely. In contrast to these facts, the number of studies investigating the chemical composition of size-segregated samples is very scarce in our country. This study was conducted at an air quality monitoring station established at the city centerof Bolu. PM samples were collected at six different particle sizes (>7.2, 3-7.2, 1.5-3, 0.95-1.5, 0.49-0.95, <0.49 µm) between 4/5/2021-6/9/2022 and analyzed in terms of ions (Li^+ Ca^(2+), Na^+, Mg^(2+), K^+, NH_4^+, F^- , Cl^-,Br^- , 〖NO〗_2^- ,NO_3^-, SO_4^(2-) and PO_4^(3-))The measured levels were ranged from 0.002 µg/m3 to 1.61±0.61 µg/m3. Size distribution analyzes showed that some of the antropogenic ions such as sulfate and ammonium showed unimodal distribution while some of them, for instance, nitrate showed bimodal distribution in the study. Sulfate oxidation is impacted at the station by meteorological parameters such as temperature, relative humidity and wind speed. On the other hand, it has been found that conversion of nitrate from its precursors is very low at the sampling location. This study also showed that the cations associated with PM are capable of neutralizing anions so that PM is not acidic. Lastly, factor analyses applied to generated data revealed that combustion and traffic emissions along with the resuspended dust are affecting the chemical composition of PM in the study area.