Characteristics of Particulate Carbon in Precipitation during the Rainy Season in Xiamen Island, China

Measuring wet deposition of organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) aerosol is crucial for the understanding of their circulation and climate effect. To further understand the wet deposition of particulate carbon (OC and EC), precipitation samples were collected from April to August 2014 on Xiamen Island in China. EC and water insoluble organic carbon (WIOC) concentrations were analyzed using a thermal optical method to investigate temporal variations and wet deposition fluxes. The average EC and WIOC concentrations were 7.3 μgC·L−1 and 495.3 μgC·L−1, respectively, which are both comparable to the results reported in European areas. EC and WIOC concentrations were higher in spring than in summer. Higher EC concentrations were found in April, which were probably associated with the transport of air masses from northern continental areas. Higher WIOC concentrations were found in May and were mainly attributed to air masses from the South China Sea. Lower concentrations of EC and WIOC in the summer were primarily due to the clean air masses transported from the ocean. The wet deposition flux was calculated as the product of concentration and precipitation amount. Average wet deposition fluxes of EC and WIOC were estimated to be 0.6 mgC·m−2·month−1 and 36.7 mgC·m−2·month−1, respectively. Wet deposition fluxes of EC and WIOC exhibited similar concentration trends. The largest flux in EC wet deposition occurred in April (1.8 mgC·m−2·month−1), while the largest flux in WIOC wet deposition occurred in May (63.1 mgC·m−2·month−1).