Source identification for fine aerosols in Mammoth Cave National Park

In this study, positive matrix factorization (PMF) was applied to the chemical composition data of the ambient PM_2.5 collected at the Mammoth Cave National Park, an IMPROVE site in Kentucky. Eight individual carbon fractions, four organic carbons (OCs), pyrolyzed organic carbon (OP) and three elemental carbons (ECs), were provided to the analysis. Nine sources including the well-distinguished gasoline emission and diesel emission were identified. Also, the back trajectories indicated the crustal factor in this study were likely caused by Saharan dust storms in the summer. The apportionment of nine sources was: gasoline emission (6.7%), diesel emission (3.1%), summer secondary sulfate (49.0%), winter secondary sulfate (0.6%), OP-rich secondary sulfate (16.2%), secondary nitrate (2.8%), Intercontinental dust plus soil (4.9%), wood smoke (13.6%), and aged sea salt (3.2%). The results of this study will help regularize the pollution control strategies in rural areas of Kentucky and upper mid-western US while demonstrating the feasibility of applying carbon fractions to the source apportionment of rural upper-Midwestern areas.