Characterization of Fine Particulate Matter Emitted from the Resuspension of Road and Pavement Dust in the Metropolitan Area of São Paulo, Brazil

TLDR: In this article, the authors analyzed the composition of resuspended road dust particles in different environments: local streets, paved roads inside traffic tunnels, and high traffic streets, to quantify the concentrations of trace elements and black carbon.

Abstract: Many studies have been performed in order to characterize the sources of airborne particles in the Metropolitan Area of Sao Paulo (MASP), in Brazil. Those studies have been based on receptor modeling and most of the uncertainties in their results are related to the emission profile of the resuspended road dust particles. In this study, we analyzed the composition of resuspended road dust particles in different environments: local streets, paved roads inside traffic tunnels, and high traffic streets. We analyzed the samples to quantify the concentrations of trace elements and black carbon. On the basis of that analysis, we developed emission profiles of the resuspended road dust that are representative of the different types of urban pavement in the MASP. This study is important given the international efforts in improving emissions factors with local characteristics, mainly in South America and other regions for which there is a lack of related information. This work presents emission profiles derived from resuspended road dust samples that are representative of the different types of urban pavement in the Metropolitan Area of Sao Paulo.