Particulate Matter and Particulate Carbon at Three Sites Surrounding a Wood Pellet Manufacturer in a Rural North Carolina Town

Wood pellet manufacturing (WPM) is concentrated in the southeastern United States and located in rural communities with limited monitoring and concerns over emissions. This thesis characterizes particulate matter and particulate carbon in a rural North Carolina town surrounding a WPM facility using three sites representing differing wind exposure categories. Continuous PM2.5, PM10, and meteorology were analyzed at sub-hourly resolution, and week-integrated PM10 quartz filters were analyzed for organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) using thermal–optical transmittance. Measurements were summarized over time, evaluated by wind direction, and compared with a regulatory monitor for context. Campaign-average PM was broadly similar across sites; contrasts were driven mainly by episodic events and uneven coverage. Wind-direction-focused analyses compared site PM during periods when they were downwind of the facility, and OC/EC results provided visit-integrated composition contrasts. These findings fill a measurement gap near WPM facilities and motivate future source-resolved work.