Stable lead isotope ratios in Alaskan arctic aerosols (original) (raw)
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Stable lead isotope ratios in arctic aerosols: evidence for the origin of arctic air pollution
Atmospheric Environment (1967)
The isotopic composition of aerosol lead in the polar region potentially contains information on the origin of Arctic pollution which will complement that from meteorological and trace elemental composition studies. Weekly samples of atmospheric aerosols were collected at three locations in the Canadian Arctic from mid-1983 to mid-1984. They were analyzed for elemental composition and stable lead isotope ratios (Pb 206/207). High crustal enrichment factors confirmed that the majority of samples contained lead of anthropogenic origin. Pb 206/207 ratios were very uniform over time and between sites, suggesting a common origin of lead pollution in the Canadian Arctic. The mean isotope ratios at the Alert and Mould Bay stations were 1.160~0.010 and 1.161+0.006, respectively (samples from a third site at Igloolik were eiidently contaminated by local sources). A small nun&r of samples from Spitsbergen, taken durine flow medominantlv out of the northern U.S.S.R.. were found to have a similar mean Pb 206/207 ratio .d 1 of 1.154~0.006. From published lead isotope analyses of Soviet lead-bearing ores, we would ex&t a mean isotope ratio in industrial and vehicular emissions in the U.S.S.R. of around 1.158. Contributions to Arctic lead pollution from the U.S. and western Canadian sources can probably be ruled out, as they have significantly higher Pb 206/207 ratios. Similarly, emissions from northern Canadian and Kola Peninsula smelters can be disregarded, as they appear to have low isotope ratios. Eastern Canadian automotive lead aerosol contained only marginally lower Pb 206/207 ratios than in the Arctic, but meteorological studies argue against this region being a major source area for Arctic pollution. Scant European data suggest that European Pb emissions generally have lower isotope ratios than the Arctic samples. However, more data in Eurasia are needed before apportionments of Arctic Pb between sources within the region can be made.
Rendiconti Lincei, 2016
Size-segregated (PM 10) aerosol samples have been systematically collected at Ny-Å lesund (Svalbard Islands, Norwegian Arctic) during the spring and summer 2010 and analysed for elemental composition (major and trace elements, rare earth elements) and stable lead isotope ratios (206 Pb/ 207 Pb, 208 Pb/ 207 Pb). The analysis of the obtained dataset provided valuable information on the sources and long-range transport processes of atmospheric particulate and associated contaminants reaching the Arctic. In particular, a seasonal pattern was evident for Ba, Cd, Mn, Mo, Pb (p value B0.05), showing a higher input of elements related to anthropogenic emissions in spring compared to summer. Pb isotope ratios clearly showed that the geographic source of the anthropogenic input is subjected to a seasonal shift with an increased contribution of air masses coming from the north Eurasia during spring, and air masses coming from North America during summer. This finding was further corroborated by backtrajectory analysis. Finally, the analysis of the rare earth elements revealed an uniform pattern, without significant differences between the two seasons.
Size-segregated (PM 10) aerosol samples have been systematically collected at Ny-A ˚ lesund (Svalbard Islands, Norwegian Arctic) during the spring and summer 2010 and analysed for elemental composition (major and trace elements, rare earth elements) and stable lead isotope ratios (206 Pb/ 207 Pb, 208 Pb/ 207 Pb). The analysis of the obtained dataset provided valuable information on the sources and long-range transport processes of atmospheric particulate and associated contaminants reaching the Arc-tic. In particular, a seasonal pattern was evident for Ba, Cd, Mn, Mo, Pb (p value B0.05), showing a higher input of elements related to anthropogenic emissions in spring compared to summer. Pb isotope ratios clearly showed that the geographic source of the anthropogenic input is subjected to a seasonal shift with an increased contribution of air masses coming from the north Eurasia during spring, and air masses coming from North America during summer. This finding was further corroborated by back-trajectory analysis. Finally, the analysis of the rare earth elements revealed an uniform pattern, without significant differences between the two seasons.
Atmospheric Environment (1967)
Observations of lead 206/207 ratios and trace element concentrations in atmospheric aerosols at a rural location in Ontario, Canada confirm results of a previous study of urban aerosols that showed there are significant differences in the isotopic composition of lead from Canadian autos, Canadian smelters and eastern American sources. Lead measurements in fall 1984 and spring 1986 were apportioned to the respective sources as follows: for 1984 (55, 2, 43%) and for 1986 (69, 7, 24%). Lead isotopic and meteorological information point to In as the best elemental tracer of emissions from selected northern Canadian smelters.
Seasonal variation and source areas of airborne lead-210 at Ny-Ålesund in the High Arctic
Polar Research, 2010
High-volume aerosol particle samples were collected onto glass-fibre filters at Mount Zeppelin Global Atmosphere Watch station, Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, in 2001-05. The filters were assayed for lead-210 (210 Pb) by measuring the alpha particles of its in-grown daughter nuclide polonium-210 (210 Po). The observed 210 Pb activity concentrations at Mount Zeppelin vary between <4 and 1060 mBq m-3 , with an arithmetic mean of 130 mBq m-3 and a median of 74 mBq m-3. The lowest 210 Pb activity concentrations are found during summer and the highest are found in winter. This variation is caused by seasonal differences in the mixing conditions of the troposphere, the level of precipitation and the speed of atmospheric chemistry induced by solar radiation. The performed source area analysis, which is based on air mass back trajectories, indicated that in summer, 210 Pb can be used as a tracer for air masses coming into contact with land areas within the past 5 days. In winter this cannot be performed because of the accumulation of 210 Pb-carrying aerosol particles into the Arctic atmosphere during the Arctic night. But even in winter a low 210 Pb activity concentration indicates that the associated air mass has had little if any contact with land areas.
Isotopic composition of lead in moss and soil of the European Arctic
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 2004
Moss, O and C horizons of podzols, mainly forming complementary sample triplets, as well as filter residues of molten snow from northern Norway, northern Finland and NW Russia have been analyzed by TIMS for their Pb isotopic composition in order to study the impacts of local geogenic/anthropogenic sources and long range atmospheric transport on the Pb balance in the European Arctic. Samples were taken along two N-S transects covering an area of ϳ188.000 km 2 , including both pristine environments in the W and certain regions towards the E severely contaminated by heavy metal emissions originating from large nickel smelters and processing plants in NW Russia. The lead in moss and O horizon samples clearly reflects atmospheric deposition, as it displays overall uniform isotope ratios and is decoupled from the geogenic background, i.e. the underlying mineral soils in the C horizon. Moss and O horizon samples from the eastern N-S transect are isotopically indistinguishable from those taken along the western transect but their Pb concentrations tend to be ϳ2 times higher. This points to considerable contamination originating from the nearby Russian industrial and urban centers. However, isotopic signals of emissions from individual industrial point sources cannot be unambiguously identified because they lack characteristic isotope signatures. Pb derived from gasoline additives is swamped by Pb from other sources and can also be excluded as a major contributor to the environmental Pb in the European Arctic. Overall, the Pb isotopic signatures of moss and O horizon overlap values recorded in atmospheric lead all over central and southern Europe, more than 2000 km south of the study area. This may be taken as indicating continent-wide mixing of Pb derived from similar sources in the atmosphere or as reflecting economic globalization, or both. O horizon samples, which accumulate lead over 20-30 yr, conform to a distinct Pb isotope reference line in 207 Pb/ 206 Pb vs. 208 Pb/ 206 Pb space ("European Standard Pollution," ESP) defined by atmospheric Pb considered to be representative for the technical civilization in Europe. Conversely, the Arctic moss samples with a lifetime of Ͻ3 yr display a deviating linear trend reflecting a recent change of atmospheric input towards significantly more radiogenic Pb derived from Mississippi Valley-type ores in the U.S., fully compatible with signatures found in epiphytic lichens from Canada, but also in Pb from urban waste incinerators in central Europe. Considering the elevated Pb concentrations in moss collected along the eastern N-S transect, this congruence indicates that the Pb in moss of the European Arctic most probably originates from the nearby Russian centers of urbanization and not from transatlantic transport. We therefore suspect imported industrial goods and their subsequent attrition to be a more plausible explanation for the appearance of MVT lead in Europe.
Potential Source Areas for Atmospheric Lead Reaching Ny-Ålesund from 2010 to 2018
Atmosphere, 2021
Lead content, enrichment factors, and isotopic composition (208Pb/206Pb and 207Pb/206Pb) measured in atmospheric particulate matter (PM10) samples collected for nine years at Ny-Alesund (Svalbard islands, Norwegian Arctic) during spring and summer are presented and discussed. The possible source areas (PSA) for particulate inferred from Pb isotope ratio values were compared to cluster analysis of back-trajectories. Results show that anthropogenic Pb dominates over natural crustal Pb, with a recurring higher influence in spring, compared to summer. Crustal Pb accounted for 5–16% of the measured Pb concentration. Anthropogenic Pb was affected by (i) a Central Asian PSA with Pb isotope signature compatible with ores smelted in the Rudny Altai region, at the Russian and Kazakhstan border, which accounted for 85% of the anthropogenic Pb concentration, and (ii) a weaker North American PSA, contributing for the remaining 15%. Central Asian PSA exerted an influence on 71–86% of spring sampl...
The Science of the Total …, 2002
To investigate the capability of the lead isotope signature technique to support a source apportionment study at a Continental scale, atmospheric particulate matter was collected at Cap Gris-Nez (Eastern Channel, northern France), over one year (1995–1996). Four days retrospective trajectories of air masses were available during each sampling experiment. Twenty-eight samples, for which the origin of aerosols was unambiguously determined, were selected for isotopic measurements. Considering the Enrichment Factors, EFCrust of lead and its size distribution, we show that lead is mostly from anthropogenic origin and mainly associated with [0.4<diameter<0.9 μm] particles. The extent to which various Continental sources influence the lead abundance in aerosols is exhibited by considering both the lead concentration and the origin of air masses. Lead concentration is higher by a factor of approximately seven, when air masses are derived from Continental Europe, by comparison with marine air masses. Taking into account these concentrations and the vertical movements of air masses, we compare the different isotopic compositions using a statistical non-parametric test (Kolmogorov–Smirnov). We produce evidence that, for most of the cases, air masses originating from Continental Europe exhibit a more radiogenic composition (1.134<206Pb/207Pb<1.172) than air masses coming from the United Kingdom (1.106<206Pb/207Pb<1.124). Generally, lead isotopic compositions in aerosols are clearly distinct from the gasoline signatures in European countries, strongly suggesting that automotive lead is no longer the major component of this metal in the air. Gasoline and industrial isotopic signatures could explain the origin of lead in our aerosol samples. A source apportionment based upon 206Pb/207Pb ratios, suggests that the difference between British (206Pb/207Pb=1.122±0.038) and Continental (206Pb/207Pb=1.155±0.022) signatures may be largely explained by differences in the petrol lead content of aerosols (23–62% in Great Britain vs. 10–36% in Continental Europe).
1998
Changes in the lead concentration in Antarctic snow over the past 30 years are considered as a response of the environment to a well-documented environ mental change (decrease of lead emissions into the atmosphere). New data confirm the recent decreasing trend of lead concentration in snow as revealed by previous studies. Furthermore, comparing changes in the lead concentration in Antarctic snow layers with lead emissions from different anthropic sources, we can hypothesise that under present day climatic conditions, lead-enriched aerosols reaching the Atlantic and Pacific sectors of East Antarctica originate mainly in South America and Australia, respectively.