Caracterización granulométrica y mineralógica de la materia particulada atmosférica en el área ceràmica de Castellón

Size particle and mineralogical composition of atmospheric particulate pollutants in the ceramic industrial area of Castellon. Size and composition are two basic parameters to asses the behaviour and the origin of particulate atmospheric contaminants. The monitoring of the levels of atmospheric particles by means of cascade impactor sampler allow to asses the both parameters together. In this work, the physical and the mineralogical characteristics of TPS in the industrial ceramic area of Castellon are described. Samples of airborne particulate were collected by using a cascade impactor sampler . This collector allow to obtain seven fractions of size particle (range:0.5 to 32µm) without filters. Five sampling places were studied. Station A located at coastal line, Station B, Station C and Station E placed at the ceramic industrial area, and Station D (remote station) located at 35Km from the industrial area. The concentration levels, which were obtained, were upper in the ceramic industrial areas than Station A from 35 to 25 % for TPS and PM 10 .The concentration’s values of particles in the minor range of particle size were similar in the three sampling stations, but they were upper in the PM2.5 fraction and equal in the PM1 fraction. At remote station, the concentration levels, which were obtained, were homogenous for particles from 4 to 32 µm. Two typical ranges of particle size were identified which are associated to the concentration levels in the ceramic industrial areas. This fact due to explain the existence of particle distribution at different levels of height. The mineralogical analysis has shown that there is a homogenous composition in the ceramic industrial area. The maximum values of the mineral contents, in the size particle distributions, has permitted to identify the natural and the human activities source origins in this area.