Insight into the Global Distribution and Chemical Composition of PM2.5 from the SPARTAN Global Aerosol Network

The Surface PARTiculate mAtter Network (SPARTAN) is a long-term project that includes characterization of chemical and physical attributes of aerosols from filter samples collected worldwide. This presentation discusses the ongoing efforts of SPARTAN to define and quantify major ions and trace metals found in fine particulate matter (PM2. 5). Gravimetrically-weighed filters represent multi-day averages of PM2. 5, with a collocated nephelometer sampling air continuously. SPARTAN instruments are paired with AERONET sun photometers to better understand the relationship between ground-level PM2. 5 and columnar aerosol optical depth (AOD). We examine the chemical composition of PM2. 5 in more than 10 countries between the years 2013 and 2016. Several PM2. 5 chemical components varied by more than an order of magnitude between sites. Ammonium sulfate ranged from 1.1 μg m-3 (Buenos Aires …