Spatial inhomogeneity of anions in ambient particulate matter collected on air filters: determination using a drift-corrected ion chromatography technique

The spatial inhomogeneity of anions in ambient particulate matter collected on filters has been investigated using two different sub-sampling techniques and with analysis by a drift-corrected ion chromatography technique. The results highlight the inhomogeneity in anion mass along the radius of the sampled filter, in agreement with analogous studies on metals in PM, and also, more surprisingly, significant random differences between sub-samples based on filter sectors. Implications for the sub-sampling of filters for the purposes of performing multiple analyses are discussed.