P.V.V. PRASADA RAO, K. DEVENDRA VIJAY AND CH. DURGA PRASAD
Abstract
The present work is a study on monitoring of organic compounds present in particulate matter (PM10) collected from the bowl area of Visakhapatnam during April 2013 - March 2014. Ambient air samples have been collected and were analyzed using Gas chromatography - Mass spectrometry (GC-MS), with an emphasis on identifying organic compounds including non-volatile polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in ambient PM10. Experimental findings suggest the presence of ten organic compounds, viz., n-hexane, ethyl acetate, cyclohexane, styrene, chlorobenzene, 1,2- dichloroethane, methyl isobutyl ketone and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons like benzo [a] pyrene, benzo [e]pyrene and chrysene in PM10 collected from the air cover of industrial, residential, commercial and mixed areas of Visakhapatnam bowl region. Preliminary assessment suggests that in-house industrial and vehicular emissions along with biomass and refuse burning are significant contributors to the organic fraction of PM10 in Visakhapatnam air shed.