Comparison of concentrations of chemical species and emission sources PM(2.5) before pandemic and during pandemic in Krakow, Poland

Observations of air pollution in Krakow have shown that air quality has been improved during the last decade. In the presented study two factors affecting the physicochemical characteristic of PM(2.5) fraction at AGH station in Krakow were observed. One is the ban of using solid fuels for heating purposes and the second is COVID-19 pandemic in Krakow. The PM(2.5) fraction was collected during the whole year every 3rd day between 2nd March 2020 and 28th February 2021 at AGH station in Krakow. In total 110 PM(2.5) fraction samples were collected. The chemical composition was determined for these samples. The elemental analysis was performed by energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) technique, ions analysis was performed by ion chromatography (IC) and black carbon by optical method. In order to identify the emission sources the positive matrix factorization (PMF) was used. The results of such study were compared to similar analysis performed for PM(2.5) for the period from June 2018 to May 2019 at AGH station in Krakow. The PM(2.5) concentration dropped by 25% in 2020/2021 in comparison to 2018/2019 at this station. The concentrations of Si, K, Fe, Zn and Pb were lowering by 43–64% in the year 2020/2021 in comparison to 2018/2019. Cu, Mn, Zn and Pb come from mechanical abrasion of brakes and tires while Ti, Fe, Mn and Si are crustal species. They are the indicators of road dust (non-exhaust traffic source). Moreover, the annual average contribution of traffic/industrial/soil/construction work source was reduced in 2020/2021 in comparison to 2018/2019. As well the annual average contribution of fuels combustion was declining by 22% in 2020/2021 in comparison to 2018/2019. This study shows that the ban and lockdown, during COVID-19 pandemic, had significant impact on the characteristic of air pollution in Krakow.