Characteristics and Source Apportionment of Ambient Volatile Organic Compounds in a Science Park in Central Taiwan

Air samples were collected concurrently at four sites using stainless steel canisters in a science park in central Taiwan. The airborne volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were then analyzed using a gas chromatograph and a mass spectrometer (GC/MS). Eighteen volatile organic compounds (C-1-C-8) in six hydrocarbon groups were identified. Measurements reveal that the three dominant species were 2-butanone (8.60 +/- 0.98 ppbv), toluene (6.13 +/- 1.67 ppbv), and acetone (6.03 +/- 2.79 ppbv), while most other species were present at a concentration of below 1.00 ppbv. On average, the most abundant hydrocarbon group was ketones (56.95%), followed by aromatic compounds (27.75%), alkanes (8.33%), fluoroalkanes (3.40%), chloroalkanes (2.47%), and nitrile compounds (1.10%). Principal component analysis (PCA) identified two components PC1 and PC2. Ten species in PC1 and eight species in PC2 had loadings of greater than 0.8, suggesting that the emission sources of PC1 were related to high-tech industries and traffic, and those of PC2 were related to fugitive emissions of organic solvents and refrigerants.