A practical option for the selection of suitable plants for the management of airborne particulate matter (PM) (vol 20, pg 11537, 2023)

In this study, PM deposition on plants was quantitatively analyzed in an urban roadside environment of Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh (India). The leaf wash method was used to obtain PM retention capacity in the respirable and non-respirable ranges. Additionally, micrographs of plant leaves were obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and used to quantify PM in three size ranges (0.2–2.5 μm, 2.5–10 μm, and 10–100 μm). There were large differences in PM retention capacity between our results and the conventional method. In contrast to the general expectation, smooth surface leaves were found to remove PM in a respirable range more efficiently than rough surface leaves. Polyalthia longifolia showed the highest retention capacity for respirable PM by a conventional leaf wash method, while Dalbergia sissoo showed the best results based on our approach. The image analysis based on SEM micrographs indicates a specific pattern for the accumulation of PM in distinct size ranges. Overall, the results of this study suggest that an image-based quantification can be used as an effective option for a rapid and superior selection of the plant species needed for urban road greening programs. © 2022, The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Iranian Society of Environmentalists (IRSEN) and Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University.