Xu, Yue and Zhang, Yan-Lin and Li, Jun and Gioia, Rosalinda and Zhang, Gan and Li, Xiang-Dong and Spiro, Baruch and Bhatia, Ravinder S. and Jones, Kevin C. (2012) The spatial distribution and potential sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) over the Asian marginal seas and the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 117 (D7). ISSN 0747-7309
Full text not available from this repository.Abstract
Gaseous and particle-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were analyzed in air samples taken on a voyage of the Scholar Ship from January 16th to March 14th, 2008. Samples were taken from the Asian marginal seas and the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, providing an opportunity to assess spatial trends and potential sources of atmospheric PAHs over those oceans. The results show that continental sources were still responsible for some high concentrations of PAHs measured over the oceans. The Σ15PAHs in the gaseous phase were elevated on the approach to China and India, while the highest Σ15PAHs in the particulate phase were found at Chennai Harbor and close to Guinea. The high proportion of fluorene in the gas phase over the East and South China Sea could be a marker of coal and coke related combustion emission from Mainland China. The elevated high-molecular-weight PAHs in particles close to Guinea might be related to biomass burning in Africa. These results are consistent with previous PAH emission inventories and highlight the potential impact of continental PAH sources in China, India and Africa on the adjacent marine atmosphere.