Lead isotope and trace metal characteristics of particulates accumulated on vehicular tunnel ceilings in Hong Kong and Guangzhou, SE China

Ever-increasing accumulation of trace metals in the environment is a serious health concern. This is a valid apprehension particularly in urban settings where the population and the level of trace metal contamination are increasing rapidly. Hong Kong and Guangzhou are the most populated cities in the region of the Pearl River Delta, the fastest growing economic region in the world. In unconfined urban compartments, particulates deposited on the earth surface such as road dusts and gully sediments are good indicators to assess the level of trace metal contamination. In such locations, however, source partitioning of the pollution, which is essential to assess and then reduce the potential environmental risk, is a difficult task. This is mainly due to the complexity and variability of site-specific natural and anthropogenic conditions. This leads us to focus on the particulates accumulated in relatively confined settings, such as vehicular tunnels. Our recent studies demonstrated that particulates accumulated on the ceiling of tunnels are useful to characterize particulates mainly derived from traffic related activities. With this in mind, Pb isotope ratios and trace metal contents of the ceiling dusts from the Cross-Harbor Tunnel （CHT） in Hong Kong and the Pearl River Tunnel （PRT） in Guangzhou were characterized and compared with each other in order to evaluate the environmental impact of traffic derived inorganic pollutants in the region. The ceiling dusts from both tunnels were dominated by silt-sized particles （〈63 μm） which are significantly freer than those of road dusts, usually larger than （〉200 μm）. In general, Cr, Ni, Pb and especially Cu contents of the ceiling dusts from CHT were noticeably higher than those from PRT. This was partly attributed to longer residence time of particulates in CHT, which has been operating since 1976, while the PRT was open to public in 1996. On the other hand, Co, Fe, Mn and Zn contents of the ceiling dusts from CHT were similar to those from PRT, while Ca and Mg contents were noticeably lower.

Lead isotope and trace metal characteristics of particulates accumulated on vehicular tunnel ceilings in Hong Kong and Guangzhou, SE China