| Atmospheric particulate matters and their elements were concurrently measured at two sites
located in the north and southeast parts of Urmia Lake from January to September 2013. At both
sampling sites, average concentrations of total suspended particulate, particles with the
aerodynamic diameter of smaller than 10 μm, smaller than 2.5 μm, and smaller than 1 μm were
260 ± 106, 180 ± 73, 30 ± 8, and 25 ± 7 μg m-3, respectively.
The analyzed water soluble ions accounted for approximately 11 - 13 % mass concentrations of
total suspended particulate and 8 - 9 % of particles smaller than 10 μm, and the sum of the
concentrations of the analyzed elements associated with both ranged from 9 to 41 μg m-3 (6.5 -
9.6 % in mass) and 7 to 26 μg m-3 (5.5 - 11.3 % in mass), respectively. Thus, particulate matter
was composed of a complex mixture of minerals such as halite, quartz, gypsum, hexahydrite, and
Bassanite. |