Abstract The ESCAPE study (European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects) investigates relationships between long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution and health using cohort studies across Europe. This paper analyses the spatial variation of PM 2.5 , PM 2.5 absorbance, PM 10 and PM coarse concentrations between and within 20 study areas across Europe. We measured NO 2 , NO x , PM 2.5 , PM 2.5 absorbance and PM 10 between October 2008 and April 2011 using standardized methods. PM coarse was determined as the difference between PM 10 and PM 2.5 . In each of the twenty study areas, we selected twenty PM monitoring sites to represent the variability in important air quality predictors, including population density, traffic intensity and altitude. Each site was monitored over three 14-day periods spread over a year, using Harvard impactors. Results for each site were averaged after correcting for temporal variation using data obtained from a reference site, which was operated year-round. Substantial concentration differences were observed between and within study areas. Concentrations for all components were higher in Southern Europe than in Western and Northern Europe, but the pattern differed per component with the highest average PM 2.5 concentrations found in Turin and the highest PM coarse in Heraklion. Street/urban background concentration ratios for PM coarse (mean ratio 1.42) were as large as for PM 2.5 absorbance (mean ratio 1.38) and higher than those for PM 2.5 (1.14) and PM 10 (1.23), documenting the importance of non-tailpipe emissions. Correlations between components varied between areas, but were generally high between NO 2 and PM 2.5 absorbance (average R 2  = 0.80). Correlations between PM 2.5 and PM coarse were lower (average R 2  = 0.39). Despite high correlations, concentration ratios between components varied, e.g. the NO 2 /PM 2.5 ratio varied between 0.67 and 3.06. In conclusion, substantial variability was found in spatial patterns of PM 2.5 , PM 2.5 absorbance, PM 10 and PM coarse . The highly standardized measurement of particle concentrations across Europe will contribute to a consistent assessment of health effects across Europe.

Spatial variation of PM2.5, PM10, PM2.5 absorbance and PMcoarse concentrations between and within 20 European study areas and the relationship with NO2 - Results of the ESCAPE project

Assessment of PM2.5 sources and their corresponding level of uncertainty in a coastal urban area using EPA PMF 5.0 enhanced diagnostics.

http://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/176230/1/Factors%20controlling%20air%20quality%20in%20different%20European%20subway%20systems.pdf

Factors controlling air quality in different European subway systems

Evolution of air pollution source contributions over one decade, derived by PM10 and PM2.5 source apportionment in two metropolitan urban areas in Greece

Aerosol chemical compositions in the North China Plain and the impact on the visibility in Beijing and Tianjin.

Influence of local and regional sources on the observed spatial and temporal variability of size resolved atmospheric aerosol mass concentrations and water-soluble species in the Athens metropolitan area

Panayiotis Razos

Papers

Influence of local and regional sources on the observed spatial and temporal variability of size resolved atmospheric aerosol mass concentrations and water-soluble species in the Athens metropolitan area