engleski

Detection of pollution sources using continuous mercury automobile survey

Overall picture of regional ecological situation shows that mercury is one of the most hazardous toxic elements in urban soils and sediments. The origins of mercury pollution at industrial and urban areas have been determined by exposure of many types of sources. A high proportion of mercury is transfered to deponent media through the atmosphere. Therefore, active sources of Hg emission can be found by mercury determination in ambient air. A portable Zeeman AAS RA-915 mercury analyzer of proprietary Lumex design has been used for continuous helicopter and automobile surveys of mercury distribution in ambient air. Carborne mercury surveys were carried out in cities and industrial areas in Russia, Ukraine, Kirgizia, Slovenia, Croatia and Czech Republic. The highest concentration of mercury in chimney plumes and the highest pollution of ambient air has been observed in the vicinity of operating mercury mines and smelters (Kirgizia), and at the premises of a chlor-alkali plant (Russia). High mercury concentration in the air was also observed around the Idrija mine and smelter (Slovenia), and chlor-alkali plant (Croatia), which were shut down for years. Around metropolitan areas which we studied (St. Petersburg, Zagreb, Ljubljana, Prague, et al.), the background mercury content in ambient air does not exceed 5 ng/m3. The local haloes, up to 300 ng/m3 and more, were recorded around plants which use mercury in technological processes, incinerators, over dumps and others contaminated sites. Our wide experience in continuous automobile mercury surveys in ambient air shows that it is the most rapid and effective method of detection and identification of active sources of mercury emission.

mercury surveys; background mercury content

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