Seasonal Variation in Water-Soluble Ions in Airborne Particulate Deposition in the Suburban Nanjing Area, Yangtze River Delta, China, During Haze Days and Normal Days

To investigate the seasonal variation and characterization of water-soluble ions (WSIs) present in airborne particle deposition (APD) during Haze Days (visibility ≤7.5 km) and Normal Days (visibility >7.5 km) in suburban Nanjing area, 151 filter samples were collected from 18 May 2013 to 26 May 2014. Ten different WSIs from the samples were determined by Ion Chromatography. The results indicated that secondary WSIs (NH₄⁺, NO₃⁻, and SO₄²⁻) were the main ions in the WSIs, averaging 17.2, 18.5, and 17.1 μg/m³, respectively, and accounting respectively 20.9, 22.5, and 20.8% of the total WSIs. On Haze Days, the concentration of WSIs increased dramatically in fine size (particle size <2.1 μm), especially for NH₄⁺, NO₃⁻, and SO₄²⁻ (increased by 52.6, 71.3, and 73.1%, respectively), whereas the concentrations of WSIs increased slowly in coarse size (2.1 μm < particle size < 10 μm), in which NH₄⁺, NO₃⁻, and SO₄²⁻ increased by 14.7, 27.2, and 54.5%, respectively. According to the backward trajectories and the principal component analysis analysis, Nanjing APD were mainly derived from the soil dust in northern China (35%) in the spring, from ocean air masses (61 and 55%) in the summer and the autumn, and from local air masses (73%) in the winter. On summer Haze Days, secondary components in PM₂.₁ consisted mainly of (NH₄)₂SO₄ and NH₄NO₃, whereas secondary components in PM₂.₁–₁₀ consisted mainly of (NH₄)₂SO₄, NH₄Cl, and NH₄NO₃. The increasing concentrations of secondary components increase the light extinction coefficients of aerosol on winter and autumn Haze Days. The concentrations of WSIs in fine size rose sharply on Haze Days, leading the visibility to exponential decline. Differently, the concentrations of WSIs in coarse size were not the main cause in the change of the visibility.