| Abstract Title: | Emission, dispersion, and speciation of airborne mercury species in the vicinity of the cement plant |
| Presenter Name: | Dr Igor Zivkovic |
| Co-authors: | Mr Sreekanth Vijayakumaran Nair Dr Joze Kotnik Dr Jan Gacnik Dr Tanja Ljubic Mlakar Prof Milena Horvat |
| Company/Organisation: | Jozef Stefan Institute |
| Country: | Slovenia |
Abstract Information :
The cement industry accounts for eleven percent of the total global anthropogenic mercury (Hg) emissions. It is the second largest source of anthropogenic mercury emissions in Europe. Within this study, we determined the extension of Hg emissions from the Salonit Anhovo cement plant (Slovenia) on atmospheric Hg concentrations measured in the ambient air at the Vodarna Station, which is situated approximately 1 km downwind from the flue gas chimney. Our results showed that the cement plant raw mill operational status plays an important role in Hg concentrations in the flue gas emitted from the plant. The average concentration of the emitted total gaseous Hg was higher (49.4 μg/m3) in case when both raw mills were off-line (the direct mode) compared to 23.4 μg/m3 when they were both on-line (the combined mode). At the Vodarna Station, the average concentrations of gaseous elemental mercury, gaseous oxidized mercury, and particulate bound mercury for the whole measurement period were 3.14 ng/m3, 53.7 pg/m3, and 41.9 pg/m3, respectively. The results from the atmospheric mercury speciation at the Vodarna Station, plant emissions, and wind data showed that all Hg species measured at Vodarna are directly related to the total gaseous mercury emitted from the cement plant. Northeastern and east-northeastern winds were responsible for the elevated mercury levels at Vodarna Station. The gaseous oxidized mercury levels were highly linked to the cement plant emissions. In the absence of northeastern winds, elevated levels of Hg species indicated potential inputs from other undetermined local sources and/or regional/global Hg transport.
