Spatial correlativity of atmospheric particulate components simultaneously collected in Japan

The simultaneous sampling of total suspended particles was performed at 14 sites in Japan during July 2008–June 2009. The spatial correlativity of each particulate composition toward Osaka was obtained for nine selected sites to overview the chemical composition and geographical distribution of particulate components across a wide range of areas nationwide. The spatial correlatives of atmospheric particulate components were extended to an even wider range of areas up to 950 km distance (meso-alpha scale region, >200 km) for a far-reaching distance analysis unique in the literature. Overall, the spatial correlations of ionic species and both organic and elemental carbons were significant, suggesting their shared advections, including their long-range transport from East Asia. Although sulfate ions are widely dispersed across Japan, such is not necessarily correlated with organic and elemental carbon, possibly indicating that the sulfate emission source, including long-range transport, differs from that of carbonaceous particulates. By contrast, the characteristics of spatial correlatives of metallic constituents vary; for example, particulate Pb and Cd show a significantly wide range of spatial correlatives to Osaka, while Mn—though limited to cities neighboring Osaka—shows significant spatial correlations. Other metallic constituents showed no significant spatial correlatives, indicating the effects of local pollutants. Moreover, the extent of the spatial dispersion of the particulate components and the relationships among chemical components were analyzed via factor analysis to highlight the effects of long-range inflow and local original emissions. In this treatment, 13 particulate components among the 19 measured were implicated in long-range transport.