Study of atmospheric pollution by particulated matter in Madrid (II): transformation and transport processes

Abstract

The second part of this work dedicated to the atmospheric pollution by particles in Madrid has been devoted to the experimental characterization of aerosol transport and transformation processes by using continuous measuring techniques of some of its physico-chemical characteristics. In this part the interest has been focussed on studying the temporal evolution of certain major components of aerosol (carbonaceous and nitrate content) as well as its number size distribution, trying to establish the relation between both processes when they are analysed in parallel and in real time. Many of the registered changes do not take place due to the transformation of particles and gaseous precursors in urban air but as a result of air masses advection with different aerosol content. The use of active remote sensing techniques like Lidar has allowed studying the spatial and temporal evolution of the transport processes, especially those cases related to long-range phenomena. The future implications of this experimental strategy are also discussed.