Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-542
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-542
24 Feb 2025
 | 24 Feb 2025

Implementation of Real-Time Source Apportionment Approaches Using the ACSM-Xact-Aethalometer (AXA) Set-Up with SoFi RT: The Athens Case Study

Manousos Ioannis Manousakas, Olga Zografou, Francesco Canonaco, Evangelia Diapouli, Stefanos Papagiannis, Maria Gini, Vasiliki Vasilatou, Anna Tobler, Stergios Vratolis, Jay G. Slowik, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, André S. H. Prevot, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis

Abstract. Air pollution, particularly from particulate matter (PM), poses serious public health and environmental risks, especially in urban areas. To address this, accurate source apportionment (SA) of PM is essential for effective air quality management. Traditional SA approaches often rely on offline data collection, limiting timely responses to pollution events. SA applied on data from online techniques, especially with high temporal resolution is advantageous over offline techniques, enabling the study of the diurnal variability of emission sources and also the study of specific events. Recent technological advancements now enable real-time SA, allowing continuous, detailed analysis of pollution sources. This study presents the first application of the ACSM-Xact-Aethalometer (AXA) setup combined with SoFi RT software for real-time source apportionment (RT-SA) of PM in Athens, Greece. The AXA setup integrates chemical, elemental, and black carbon data streams, covering a broad spectrum of PM components and capturing a comprehensive representation of PM sources in an urban environment. The results demonstrate that traffic-related emissions are the largest contributors to PM, with significant contributions from secondary species such as sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, and secondary organic aerosols, which together accounted for approximately 57 % of the PM mass. Primary sources such as biomass burning and cooking contributed around 10 % each, with natural sources like dust and sea salt comprising the remainder. The SoFi RT software is employed for continuous SA, offering automated analysis of PM sources in near real-time (minutes after the measurements). Our findings demonstrate that this setup effectively identifies major pollution sources. This work underscores the AXA system's potential for advancing urban air quality monitoring and informs targeted interventions to reduce PM pollution.

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Journal article(s) based on this preprint

26 Aug 2025
Implementation of real-time source apportionment approaches using the ACSM–Xact–Aethalometer (AXA) setup with SoFi RT: the Athens case study
Manousos I. Manousakas, Olga Zografou, Francesco Canonaco, Evangelia Diapouli, Stefanos Papagiannis, Maria Gini, Vasiliki Vasilatou, Anna Tobler, Stergios Vratolis, Jay G. Slowik, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, André S. H. Prevot, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 3983–4002, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-3983-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-3983-2025, 2025
Short summary
Manousos Ioannis Manousakas, Olga Zografou, Francesco Canonaco, Evangelia Diapouli, Stefanos Papagiannis, Maria Gini, Vasiliki Vasilatou, Anna Tobler, Stergios Vratolis, Jay G. Slowik, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, André S. H. Prevot, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-542', Anonymous Referee #1, 05 Apr 2025
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Manousos Manousakas, 12 May 2025
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-542', Anonymous Referee #2, 21 Apr 2025
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC2', Manousos Manousakas, 12 May 2025

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-542', Anonymous Referee #1, 05 Apr 2025
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Manousos Manousakas, 12 May 2025
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-542', Anonymous Referee #2, 21 Apr 2025
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC2', Manousos Manousakas, 12 May 2025

Peer review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision | EF: Editorial file upload
AR by Manousos Manousakas on behalf of the Authors (12 May 2025)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (15 May 2025) by Albert Presto
RR by Anonymous Referee #2 (16 May 2025)
RR by Anonymous Referee #1 (08 Jun 2025)
ED: Publish as is (09 Jun 2025) by Albert Presto
AR by Manousos Manousakas on behalf of the Authors (11 Jun 2025)

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

26 Aug 2025
Implementation of real-time source apportionment approaches using the ACSM–Xact–Aethalometer (AXA) setup with SoFi RT: the Athens case study
Manousos I. Manousakas, Olga Zografou, Francesco Canonaco, Evangelia Diapouli, Stefanos Papagiannis, Maria Gini, Vasiliki Vasilatou, Anna Tobler, Stergios Vratolis, Jay G. Slowik, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, André S. H. Prevot, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 3983–4002, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-3983-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-3983-2025, 2025
Short summary
Manousos Ioannis Manousakas, Olga Zografou, Francesco Canonaco, Evangelia Diapouli, Stefanos Papagiannis, Maria Gini, Vasiliki Vasilatou, Anna Tobler, Stergios Vratolis, Jay G. Slowik, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, André S. H. Prevot, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis
Manousos Ioannis Manousakas, Olga Zografou, Francesco Canonaco, Evangelia Diapouli, Stefanos Papagiannis, Maria Gini, Vasiliki Vasilatou, Anna Tobler, Stergios Vratolis, Jay G. Slowik, Kaspar R. Daellenbach, André S. H. Prevot, and Konstantinos Eleftheriadis

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Short summary
Air pollution from airborne particles is a major health and environmental concern, especially in cities. Understanding their sources is key to addressing this issue, but traditional methods require time-consuming sampling, delaying action. Our study introduces a real-time monitoring system that uses advanced instruments and software to track pollution instantly. This technology allows faster, more precise pollution analysis, helping cities create targeted strategies to improve air quality.
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