Principal components analysis (PCA) for source identification
Source identification for atmospheric aerosol is important for developing effective strategy to reduce their emissions. One of the methods for source identification is principal components analysis (PCA). My attention was drawn to this method recently first through a review article about methods and results for aerosol source apportionment over European region and then through the article “ Identification of PM sources by principal component analysis (PCA) coupled with wind direction ”. Dr. Viana Rodríguez, Mª del Mar is the lead author on both the articles . She is a researcher at the Institute of Earth Sciences Jaume Almera , Spain. Application of the principal components analysis method for aerosol is based on the foundation that each source has unique blending of various aerosol components. Variability of the components is strongly correlated among themselves when they are coming from same source when compared to a case where they are coming from heterogeneous sources. Mathemat...