Ambient particulate matter (PM) was sampled in Zabrze (southern Poland) in the heating period of 2009. It was investigated for distribution of its mass and of the masses of its 18 component elements (S, Cl, K, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ge, As, Br, Sr, Cd, Sb, Ba, and Pb) among 13 PM size fractions. In the paper, the distribution modality of and the correlations between the ambient concentrations of these elements are discussed and interpreted in terms of the source apportionment of PM emissions. By weight, S, Cl, K, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ge, As, Br, Sr, Cd, Sb, Ba, and Pb were 10 % of coarse and 9 % of ultrafine particles. The collective mass of these elements was no more than 3.5 % of the mass of the particles with the aerodynamic diameter D _p between 0.4 and 1.0 μm (PM_0.4–1), whose ambient mass concentration was the highest. The PM mass size distribution for the sampling period is bimodal; it has the accumulation and coarse modes. The coarse particles were probably of the mineral/soil origin (characteristic elements: Ca, Fe, Sr, and Ba), being re-suspended polluted soil or road dust (characteristic elements: Ca, Fe, Sr, Ba, S, K, Cr, Cu, Zn, Br, Sb, Pb). The maxima of the density functions (modes) of the concentration distributions with respect to particle size of PM-bound S, Cl, K, Cu, Zn, Ge, Br, Cd, Sb, and Pb within the D _p interval from 0.108 to 1.6 μm (accumulation PM particles) indicate the emissions from furnaces and road traffic. The distributions of PM-bound As, Mn, Ba, and Sr concentrations have their modes within D _p ≤ 0.108 μm (nucleation PM particles), indicating the emissions from high-temperature processes (industrial sources or car engines). In this work, principal component analysis (PCA) is applied separately to each of the 13 fraction-related sets of the concentrations of the 18 PM-bound elements, and further, the fractions are grouped by their origin using cluster analysis (CA) applied to the 13 fraction-related first principal components (PC1). Four distinct groups of the PM fractions are identified: (PM_1.6–2.5, PM_2.5–4.4,), (PM_0.03–0.06, PM_0.108–0.17), (PM_0.06–0.108, PM_0.17–0.26, PM_0.26–0.4, PM_0.4–0.65, PM_0.65–1, PM_1–1.6), and (PM_4.4–6.8, PM_6.8–10, PM_>10). The PM sources attributed to these groups by using PCA followed by CA are roughly the same as the sources from the apportionment done by analyzing the modality of the mass size distributions.

This paper presents a 120-day-long variability of chemical composition of submicron particulate matter (PM1) over Warsaw. The content of the following components was examined in the PM1 mass: primary (POM) and secondary (SOM) organic matter, secondary inorganic matter (SIM), elemental carbon (EC) as well as Na and Cl ions (primary inorganic matter). The 24-hour concentrations of PM1 were subject to seasonal fluctuations which are typical of urban areas in Poland; their values averaged 11 µg m–3 in summer and 17 µg m–3 in winter. Most of the PM1 components and gaseous pollutants (SO2, NO2 and NOx) revealed higher mean concentrations in winter than in summer. A statistical analysis of meteorological parameters and 24-h concentrations of PM1, PM10, SO2, NO2 and NOx confirmed a significant influence of air temperature and precipitation on the concentration patterns of these pollutants over Warsaw. The highest concentrations of PM1 occurred in winter for the following wind directions: S, SE, N and NE; in summer for NE, E and S. The analysis of back trajectories demonstrated that on days with the highest 24-h concentration of PM1 polluted air masses arrived from S and SE and affected the concentration of PM1 over Warsaw. The submicron particulate matter, in as much as 62%, comprises secondary matter (SOM and SIM). The primary sources of its precursors and – to a smaller extent – of the primary matter as well – are traffic and combustion of various fuels for the purpose of heat and power generation. Their average contribution to the development of PM1 was 15% and 51%, respectively, for the entire period of observations.

Diurnal (24-h) samples of fine particulate matter (PM_2.5, ambient particles with an aerodynamic diameter not greater than 2.5 μm) and soil samples were collected in an urban area in Warsaw, in winter. The samples were analysed for 24 elements with an Epsilon 5 spectrometer (PANalytical). The results were then arranged and compared with the results of research conducted earlier in Poland and other parts of the world. Afterwards, sources of ambient PM_2.5 were identified and the share of each in the concentration of PM_2.5 was evaluated by means of enrichment factor (EF) analysis, principal component analysis (PCA) and multi-linear regression analysis (MLRA). The results were interpreted using a detailed analysis of correlations between diurnal concentrations of PM_2.5, PM_2.5-elements, and of changes in meteorological conditions. The winter average ambient concentration of PM_2.5 in Warsaw, was 10.7 ± 7.5 μg/m³ and was much lower than in the other sites in Poland. In Warsaw, regardless of the concentration of PM_2.5, the concentrations of certain PM_2.5-bound elements, mainly toxic, were high, e.g. the average ambient concentrations of PM_2.5-bound Se, As, Co, V, Cd and Ni were 12.7 ± 30.5, 10.6 ± 34.4, 9.4 ± 13.7, 15.1 ± 32.7, 9.6 ± 22.2 and 3.5 ± 5.0 ng/m³, respectively. The elemental composition and concentrations of PM_2.5 appeared to be influenced mainly by the anthropogenic emissions (energy production based on coal and biomass combustion, whose mean contribution to the concentration of PM_2.5 was 18.4 %, and energy production based on oil combustion with a contribution of 9.9 % in PM_2.5). A mixture of soil matter and road dust was also identified in PM_2.5 (8 %). The mean contribution of traffic (exhaust) emissions to the concentration of PM_2.5 in an urban area, selected as representative of the Warsaw conurbation, was assessed at 15.4 %.

It is essential in pulmonary disease research to take into account traffic-related air pollutant exposure among urban inhabitants. In our study, 4985 people were examined for spirometric parameters in the presented research which was conducted in the years 2008–2012. The research group was divided into urban and rural residents. Traffic density, traffic structure and velocity, as well as concentrations of selected air pollutants (CO, NO₂ and PM₁₀) were measured at selected areas. Among people who live in the city, lower percentages of predicted values of spirometric parameters were noticed in comparison to residents of rural areas. Taking into account that the difference in the five-year mean concentration of PM₁₀ in the considered city and rural areas was over 17 μg/m³, each increase of PM₁₀ by 10 μg/m³ is associated with the decline in FEV₁ (forced expiratory volume during the first second of expiration) by 1.68%. These findings demonstrate that traffic-related air pollutants may have a significant influence on the decline of pulmonary function and the growing rate of respiratory diseases.

The manuscript presents an innovative and holistic approach to quantifying PAHs and BTEX emissions from the grilling process and indicates a novel driven-toxicity-based solution to recognize health effects related to BBQ emissions. The exposure scenario includes the type of grilling device, food type, and individual attitudes, but also a keen understanding of the broad health implications related to the gaseous/particulate PAHs emission, or age-related effects. The calculated incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) associated with the exposure to PAH congeners and BTEX indicates an unacceptable level in the case of charcoal and briquette grilling with the highest values for professional cooks. The sum of 15 PAH concentrations in grilled foods was highest for meat grilling over charcoal briquettes - 382,020.39 ng/m³ and lowest for meat grilling on a gas grill - 1442.16 ng/m³. The emissions of BTEX from lump charcoal grilling were 130 times higher compared to the gaseous grill. In all considered scenarios lump-charcoal and charcoal briquettes grilling derive the ILCR above the 10^-4, indicating negative effects of traditional grills on human health. The paper completes knowledge of wide-ranging health implications associated with BBQs, a topic that is almost completely unaddressed among the scientific community and policymakers.