Vertical Profiles of Mineralogical Composition of Atmospheric Dust in North-West Bohemia (Kopisty, Dlouhá Louka, Milešovka)

Abstract

This work describes the results of a study of the mineralogical composition of atmospheric aerosol in dependence on the height above the surface of the ground. The study was performed at three different locations – Kopisty near Most, Dlouhá Louka and Milešovka – in NW Bohemia. A total of 28 minerals were identified in the air, minerals of natural origin, minerals derived unambiguously from anthropogenic activities and minerals that could be both anthropogenic and natural in origin. In general, it can be stated that the content of natural minerals decreases while the fraction of minerals arising from human activities increases with increasing height above the surface of the earth within the range of altitudes studied here. It was demonstrated that a wet or damp surface has a very substantial effect on removing dust impurities from the ground-level layers of the atmosphere. The solitary Milešovka hill acts like a "tall tower" – in contrast to the Ore Mountains where the whole mass of air is lifted up together with the impurities it contains. The composition and content of impurities in Ore Mountains are almost identical to those observed at the same height above the Most basin.