Heavy Metal Pollution Characteristics and Source Analysis in the Dust Fall on Buildings of Different Heights

Hanyang Song, Jinxiang Li, Lingjun Li, Jie Dong, Wenxing Hou, Ran Yang, Shanwen Zhang, Sida Zu, Pengfei Ma and Wenji Zhao ()
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Hanyang Song: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Jinxiang Li: Beijing Municipal Ecological and Environmental Monitoring Center, Beijing 100048, China
Lingjun Li: Beijing Municipal Ecological and Environmental Monitoring Center, Beijing 100048, China
Jie Dong: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Wenxing Hou: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Ran Yang: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Shanwen Zhang: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Sida Zu: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Pengfei Ma: Satellite Application Center for Ecology and Environment, Ministry of Ecological Environment, Beijing 100048, China
Wenji Zhao: College of Resource Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 18, 1-15

Abstract: High-rise buildings block airflow, and dust accumulates on their upper surfaces. In this study, dust fall on the rooftops of low-, medium-, and high-rise buildings was sampled and analyzed to assess the degree of atmospheric heavy metal pollution. The Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, and Pb mass fractions in dust samples were analyzed by microwave digestion/inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. The average Cr, Ni, Cu, As, Cd, and Pb concentrations were highest on the rooftops of low-rise buildings, whereas those of Mn and Zn were highest on high-rise buildings. The cumulative indices for the eight heavy metals revealed a moderate pollution level for Zn on the rooftops of low- and high-rise buildings. Only the potential ecological risk index for Cd was very high, with a particularly high heavy metal-related ecological risk for low-rise buildings. The enrichment factor analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) demonstrated that Zn and Cd were strongly influenced by human activity. Zn, Cu, Cd, and Pb originated from traffic sources, Cr and Ni were derived from natural sources, and As was of industrial origin. The source analyses of rare earth elements were consistent with the heavy metal PCA results. In conclusion, our results provide a reference for hazard and source analysis of heavy metals in atmospheric dust fall on buildings of different heights.

Keywords: dust fall; enrichment factor; heavy metal; source analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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