Inorganic constituents in aerosols, cloud water and precipitation collected at the high alpine measurement station Sonnblick: Sampling, analysis and exemplary results

Background measurements at the high alpine station of the Sonnblick (altitude 3106 m) are reported. For a period of 13 months samples have been collected during 4 campaigns of 1–2 weeks duration each and analysed for their ionic and elemental composition, pH and conductivity. These samples were aerosols collected with filters, cloud water and precipitation. The samples were mainly analysed with ion chromatography (IC) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). Analysis proved to be difficult due to the low amounts of aerosols collected and the low concentrations of components in cloud water and wet precipitation. Also major problems arose in sampling due to the extreme climatic conditions. The analytical techniques, particularly those for sampling the materials, are critically evaluated and results on pollutant levels, their variation with time and the distribution of the components between the gaseous and liquid phases are presented.Abbreviations ET-AAS Electrothermal Atomic Absorption Spectrometry - F-AAS Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrometry - FIA Flow Injection Analysis - IC Ion Chromatography Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Dieter Klockow on the occasion of his 60th birthday