On the influence of chemical initial and boundary conditions on annual regional air quality model simulations for North America

2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (32) ◽  
pp. 4873-4885 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mehrez Samaali ◽  
Michael D. Moran ◽  
Véronique S. Bouchet ◽  
Radenko Pavlovic ◽  
Sophie Cousineau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
North America ◽  
Boundary Conditions ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Model Simulations ◽  
Regional Air Quality ◽  
Initial And Boundary Conditions

scholarly journals A database and tool for boundary conditions for regional air quality modeling: description and evaluation

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 339-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. H. Henderson ◽  
F. Akhtar ◽  
H. O. T. Pye ◽  
S. L. Napelenok ◽  
W. T. Hutzell
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Boundary Conditions ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Ozone Monitoring Instrument ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Uncertainty Estimates ◽  
Regional Air Quality

Abstract. Transported air pollutants receive increasing attention as regulations tighten and global concentrations increase. The need to represent international transport in regional air quality assessments requires improved representation of boundary concentrations. Currently available observations are too sparse vertically to provide boundary information, particularly for ozone precursors, but global simulations can be used to generate spatially and temporally varying lateral boundary conditions (LBC). This study presents a public database of global simulations designed and evaluated for use as LBC for air quality models (AQMs). The database covers the contiguous United States (CONUS) for the years 2001–2010 and contains hourly varying concentrations of ozone, aerosols, and their precursors. The database is complemented by a tool for configuring the global results as inputs to regional scale models (e.g., Community Multiscale Air Quality or Comprehensive Air quality Model with extensions). This study also presents an example application based on the CONUS domain, which is evaluated against satellite retrieved ozone and carbon monoxide vertical profiles. The results show performance is largely within uncertainty estimates for ozone from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument and carbon monoxide from the Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT), but there were some notable biases compared with Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) ozone. Compared with TES, our ozone predictions are high-biased in the upper troposphere, particularly in the south during January. This publication documents the global simulation database, the tool for conversion to LBC, and the evaluation of concentrations on the boundaries. This documentation is intended to support applications that require representation of long-range transport of air pollutants.

scholarly journals A database and tool for boundary conditions for regional air quality modeling: description and evaluation

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 4665-4704 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. H. Henderson ◽  
F. Akhtar ◽  
H. O. T. Pye ◽  
S. L. Napelenok ◽  
W. T. Hutzell
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Boundary Conditions ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Southern Boundary ◽  
Uncertainty Estimates ◽  
International Transport ◽  
Regional Air Quality

Abstract. Transported air pollutants receive increasing attention as regulations tighten and global concentrations increase. The need to represent international transport in regional air quality assessments requires improved representation of boundary concentrations. Currently available observations are too sparse vertically to provide boundary information, particularly for ozone precursors, but global simulations can be used to generate spatially and temporally varying Lateral Boundary Conditions (LBC). This study presents a public database of global simulations designed and evaluated for use as LBC for air quality models (AQMs). The database covers the contiguous United States (CONUS) for the years 2000–2010 and contains hourly varying concentrations of ozone, aerosols, and their precursors. The database is complimented by a tool for configuring the global results as inputs to regional scale models (e.g., Community Multiscale Air Quality or Comprehensive Air quality Model with extensions). This study also presents an example application based on the CONUS domain, which is evaluated against satellite retrieved ozone vertical profiles. The results show performance is largely within uncertainty estimates for the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) with some exceptions. The major difference shows a high bias in the upper troposphere along the southern boundary in January. This publication documents the global simulation database, the tool for conversion to LBC, and the fidelity of concentrations on the boundaries. This documentation is intended to support applications that require representation of long-range transport of air pollutants.

scholarly journals Seasonal ozone vertical profiles over North America using the AQMEII group of air quality models: model inter-comparison and stratospheric intrusions

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina Astitha ◽  
Ioannis Kioutsoukis ◽  
Ghezae Araya Fisseha ◽  
Roberto Bianconi ◽  
Johannes Bieser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
North America ◽  
Vertical Profiles ◽  
Lateral Boundary ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Lateral Boundary Conditions ◽  
Stratospheric Intrusions

Abstract. This study evaluates simulated vertical ozone profiles produced in the framework of the third phase of the Air Quality Model Evaluation International Initiative (AQMEII3) against ozonesonde observations in North America for the year 2010. Four research groups from the United States (U.S.) and Europe have provided ozone vertical profiles to conduct this analysis. Because some of the modeling systems differ in their meteorological drivers, wind speed and temperature are also included in the analysis. In addition to the seasonal ozone profile evaluation for 2010, we also analyze chemically inert tracers designed to track the influence of lateral boundary conditions on simulated ozone profiles within the modeling domain. Finally, cases of stratospheric ozone intrusions during May–June 2010 are investigated by analyzing ozonesonde measurements and the corresponding model simulations at Intercontinental Chemical Transport Experiment Ozonesonde Network Study (IONS) experiment sites in the western United States. The evaluation of the seasonal ozone profiles reveals that at a majority of the stations, ozone mixing ratios are under-estimated in the 1–6 km range. The seasonal change noted in the errors follows the one seen in the variance of ozone mixing ratios, with the majority of the models exhibiting less variability than the observations. The analysis of chemically inert tracers highlights the importance of lateral boundary conditions up to 250 hPa for the lower tropospheric ozone mixing ratios (0–2 km). Finally, for the stratospheric intrusions, the models are generally able to reproduce the location and timing of most intrusions but underestimate the magnitude of the maximum mixing ratios in the 2–6 km range and overestimate ozone up to the first km possibly due to marine air influences that are not accurately described by the models. The choice of meteorological driver appears to be a greater predictor of model skill in this altitude range than the choice of air quality model.

scholarly journals Potential regional air quality impacts of cannabis cultivation facilities in Denver, Colorado

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (22) ◽  
pp. 13973-13987 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chi-Tsan Wang ◽  
Christine Wiedinmyer ◽  
Kirsti Ashworth ◽  
Peter C. Harley ◽  
John Ortega ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
The State ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Critical Data ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Data Gaps ◽  
Regional Air Quality ◽  
Available Information ◽  
New Industry

Abstract. The legal commercialization of cannabis for recreational and medical use has effectively created a new and almost unregulated cultivation industry. In 2018, within the Denver County limits, there were more than 600 registered cannabis cultivation facilities (CCFs) for recreational and medical use, mostly housed in commercial warehouses. Measurements have found concentrations of highly reactive terpenes from the headspace above cannabis plants that, when released in the atmosphere, could impact air quality. Here we developed the first emission inventory for cannabis emissions of terpenes. The range of possible emissions from these facilities was 66–657 t yr−1 of terpenes across the state of Colorado; half of the emissions are from Denver County. Our estimates are based on the best available information and highlight the critical data gaps needed to reduce uncertainties. These realizations of inventories were then used with a regulatory air quality model, developed by the state of Colorado to predict regional ozone impacts. It was found that most of the predicted changes occur in the vicinity of CCFs concentrated in Denver. An increase of 362 t yr−1 in terpene emissions in Denver County resulted in increases of up to 0.34 ppb in hourly ozone concentrations during the morning and 0.67 ppb at night. Model predictions indicate that in Denver County every 1000 t yr−1 increase in terpenes results in 1 ppb increase in daytime hourly ozone concentrations and a maximum daily 8 h average (MDA8) increase of 0.3 ppb. The emission inventories developed here are highly uncertain, but highlight the need for more detailed cannabis and CCF data to fully understand the possible impacts of this new industry on regional air quality.

scholarly journals Potential Regional Air Quality Impacts of Cannabis Cultivation Facilities in Denver, Colorado

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chi-Tsan Wang ◽  
Christine Wiedinmyer ◽  
Kirsti Ashworth ◽  
Peter C. Harley ◽  
John Ortega ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
The State ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Critical Data ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Data Gaps ◽  
Regional Air Quality ◽  
Available Information ◽  
New Industry

Abstract. The legal commercialization of cannabis for recreational and medical use has effectively created a new and almost unregulated cultivation industry. In 2018, within the Denver County limits, there were more than 600 registered cannabis cultivation facilities (CCFs) for recreational and medical use, mostly housed in commercial warehouses. Measurements have found concentrations of highly reactive terpenes from the headspace above cannabis plants that, when released in the atmosphere, could impact air quality. Here we developed the first emission inventory for cannabis emissions of terpenes. The range of possible emissions from these facilities was 66–657 metric tons/year of terpenes across the state of Colorado; half of the emissions are from Denver County. Our estimates are based on the best available information and highlight the critical data gaps needed to reduce uncertainties. These realizations of inventories were then used with a regulatory air quality model, developed by the State of Colorado to predict regional ozone impacts. It was found that most of the predicted changes occur in the vicinity of CCFs concentrated in Denver. An increase of 362 metric tons/year of terpene emissions in Denver County resulted in increases of up to 0.34 ppb in hourly ozone concentrations during the morning and 0.67 ppb at night. Model predictions indicate that in Denver County every 1,000 metric tons/year increase of terpenes results in 1 ppb increase in daytime hourly ozone concentrations and a maximum daily 8-hour average (MDA8) increase of 0.3 ppb. The emission inventories developed here are highly uncertain, but highlight the need for more detailed cannabis and CCFs data to fully understand the possible impacts of this new industry on regional air quality.

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