Study of Characteristics of Black Carbon Aerosol and Atmospheric Particles over the Lhasa Area of China

Statistical analysis is performed of observed concentrations of black carbon aerosol (BC for short hereafter), PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 (collectively called atmospheric particles hereinafter, when possible) made in 2006 over the Lhasa area of China, leading to some aspects of their variations in, and inherent correlativity between, atmospheric particles and BC there. Results suggest that the monthly mean mass concentration of BC and the atmospheric particles display a single valley form, with the biggest concentration in winter; the relative annual ranges show BC (PM10) to be smallest (largest); moist scavenging plays an important role in the variation of BC and the atmospheric particles; BC and these particles exhibit a bi-peak and bi-valley distribution for their daily change in mass concentration, with the peaks emerging in the morning and late in the evening. The correlativity analysis indicates that the BC and the atmospheric particles of the Lhasa region have the same emitting sources, with BC being the smaller-size particles.