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The contents of water-soluble major's ions (MSA, Cl - , NO 3 - , SO 4 2- , Na + , NH 4 + , K + , Mg 2+ in remote coastal areas in Bou-Ismail; in the South-West of the Mediterranean Sea (Algeria), during a 2-year period; from July 2011 to August 2013, under the framework of the ChArMEx project (Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment, http://charmex.lsce.ipsl.fr ). The total water-soluble ion concentrations in PM 2+ ) in the PM 10 particle fraction were investigated thanks to detailed measurements of the main chemical constituents of PM 10 in remote coastal areas in Bou-Ismail; in the South-West of the Mediterranean Sea (Algeria), during a 2-year period; from July 2011 to August 2013, under the framework of the ChArMEx project (Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment, http://charmex.lsce.ipsl.fr ). The total water-soluble ion concentrations in PM 10 at the Bou-Ismail measurement station varied from 3.3 µg/m 3 (July 2011) to 49.6 µg/m 3 (March 2012). The annual mean mass concentrations of ions in the PM 10 particulate fraction were Cl -  > Na +  > SO 4 2-  > Mg 2+  > NO 3 -  > Ca 2+  > K +  > NH 4 +  > Oxalate. The change in potassium nss-K + concentrations in PM 10 over the course of a year reveals that biomass burning (BB) has an effect on three separate seasons: the beginning of winter (February and March), the end of summer (August), and the autumn (September and October). The origin periods of biomass burning BB identified employing the mapping of hotspots and fires during periods of August and September 2011, 2012, and 2013 underlined the important fires in the surrounding areas of the Mediterranean Sea (Sardinia Islands from Italy, Corsica from France)., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

As part of the ChArMEx project (Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment, http://charmex.lsce.ipsl.fr), one year of continuous filter sampling was conducted from August 2012 to August 2013 at a rural (coastal) site in Algeria aiming to better document fine aerosol seasonal variability and chemical composition in the Southern part of the Mediterranean. Over 350 filters have been collected, weighted, and analyzed for the main ions and organic and elemental carbon. The obtained mass concentrations varied between 2.5 and 50.6 μg/m 3 for PM 2.5 . The annual modulations of PM 2.5 showed higher concentrations in the end summer 2012 and the early summer 2013 (28.50 μg/m 3 in August 2012, 20.23 μg/m 3 in September 2012, 20.19 μg/m 3 in July 2013, and 17.88 μg/m 3 in August 2013). The particulate organic matter (POM) presented the greatest contribution (50%), followed by the secondary inorganic aerosols (SIA, 27%). The average organic carbon OC concentrations ranged from 1.66 to 6.05 μgC/m 3 . The average elemental carbon EC concentrations ranged from 0.92 to 3.49 μgC/m 3 and contributed 7% of the PM 2.5 mass to Bou-Ismail. The average value of the OC /EC ratio was close to 5.1 in Bou-Ismail, and was close to that found in Finokalia 4 (Greece 2004, 2006) but was lower than that of Montseny 11 (Spain 2002-2007) Western Mediterranean Basin (WMB). The concentrations of water-soluble organic carbon WSOC in the PM 2.5 ranging from 0.66 to 3.70 μg/m 3 recorded the minimum level in March 2013, and the maximum level in August 2012, with an average of 2.02 μg/m 3 .