The lipid composition of the Western Mediterranean aerosol

Summary Marine remote aerosol samples collected in a fixed station situated at 1100 m above sea level in Mallorca Island (Western Mediterranean) have been analyzed for lipids, both neutral and acidic, by capillary gas chromatography (GC) and GC coupled to mass spectrometry. Higher plant and algal compounds are predominant. The former encompass distributions of even numbered C22–C32 n-alkan-1-ols (8–21 ng/m³) and n-aldehydes, C25–C32 odd numbered n-alkanes (3–6 ng/m³), and n-nonacosan-10-ol, -sitosterol (0–0.09 ng/m³), dehydroabietic acid and triterpenols. The latter are constituted by even numbered C14–C18 fatty acids (0.6–30 ng/m³) and cholest-5-en-3-ol (0–0.86 ng/m³). Pyrolytic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are also found (86–410 pg/m³) whereas direct petrogenic inputs are not significant.