A Contributing Factor and Characteristics of High 210Po Activity in Aerosols at Hanoi, Vietnam

Air pollution in crowded cities has become an urgent issue in recent years. The high toxic ²¹⁰ Po activity and trace heavy elements’ content in 24 aerosol samples in Hanoi, Vietnam were determined at roadside and residential areas. ²¹⁰ Po activity in the studied aerosol samples was observed with a wide range (from 92.2 to 3500 µBq.m ^− 3 and 1395 µBq.m ^− 3 on average) and relatively high activities in roadside samples in comparison with the worldwide reference value. The results showed the predominance of the earth's crustal and fuel-combusting elements relating to traffic activities, the lower elements concentration origin from other combusting sources, the large Ni excess, the strong relationship between ²¹⁰ Po and Ni, the high ratio of Ni/Pb and the far greater ²¹⁰ Po activities in the roadside in comparison with residential aerosol samples at the study area. A suggestion, the main primary sources and a factor contributing to high ²¹⁰ Po activity in Hanoi aerosol samples are human activity relating to fuel combustion, high traffic density, and local sources.