scholarly journals Can Green Walls Reduce Outdoor Ambient Particulate Matter, Noise Pollution and Temperature?

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (14) ◽  
pp. 5084 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Paull ◽  
Daniel Krix ◽  
Fraser Torpy ◽  
Peter Irga
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Urban Centre ◽  
Green Wall ◽  
Green Walls ◽  
Reduction Capacity

Green walls have previously demonstrated the capacity to reduce particulate matter (PM), noise pollution, and temperature conditions in manipulative experiments and computational models. There is, however, minimal evidence that green walls can influence ambient environmental conditions, especially taking into account the variable environmental conditions encountered in situ. The aim of this paper was to determine if green walls have a quantitative effect on ambient air quality in an urban environment. Ambient PM, noise, and temperature were recorded at 12 green wall and adjacent reference wall locations across a dense urban centre, over a 6-month period. The results indicated that PM levels and temperature did not significantly differ between the green wall and reference wall sites. Ambient noise at the green wall sites, however, was significantly lower than at the reference wall locations. It is suggested that mechanically assisted, or ‘active’ green wall systems may have a higher PM and temperature reduction capacity, and if so, they will be more valuable for installation in situ compared to standard passive systems, although this will require further research.

Ambient Air Quality in the Vicinity of a Herder Mediated In-Situ Burn Field Test in Alaska

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 (1) ◽  
pp. 2017149
Author(s):  
Patrik Sartz ◽  
Srijan Aggarwal
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Occupational Safety ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Occupational Safety And Health ◽  
Ambient Air Quality ◽  
Exposure Limits ◽  
Smoke Plume ◽  
Safety And Health

In-situ burning (ISB) is an efficient and important response tool in a wide range of conditions from open water and very open drift ice (herders) to consolidated ice (self-contained). Herding agents provide a means to thicken and then burn uncontained slicks that would otherwise be too thin to ignite. In this project we assessed the impacts on ambient air quality in the vicinity of the location following ISB tests on crude oil herded and ignited from the air in a large purpose built test pond outside of Fairbanks Alaska. We measured downwind and in-the-smoke-plume, concentrations of respirable particulate matter sizes (PM2.5) and seven different combustion gases (CO, CO2, NO, NO2, NOx, SO2, & VOCs) during five ISB tests, with sampling instruments placed 6–12 m away from the source area. It was also investigated if the herding agent was detectable in the air borne plume. Although in this study we did not use instrument and methods specifically approved by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), to provide a context the study results were compared with exposure limits provided by these agencies. From our results downwind, in the smoke plume, concentrations of particulate matter and SO2 were found to significantly exceed (P <0.01) NIOSH and OSHA exposure limits, while the remaining compounds measured were significantly below (P <0.01) established NIOSH and OSHA exposure limits. In addition, GC/MS Analysis of aerosol samples collected utilizing a flow meter and carbon sorbent tubes in the smoke plume, the silicone based functional group of the applied OP-40 herding agent was not detected in the collected samples. The concentrations measured in this study in the vicinity of the ISB site, lasted for less than ten minutes, before drifting downwind and becoming greatly diluted. These results provide information which might be helpful towards developing guidelines for worker safety in spill response situations.

scholarly journals Assessment of Plant Species Suitability in Green Walls Based on API, Heavy Metal Accumulation, and Particulate Matter Capture Capacity

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mersedeh Sadat Hozhabralsadat ◽  
Ava Heidari ◽  
Zahra Karimian ◽  
Mohammad Farzam
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Control Sample ◽  
Tolerance Index ◽  
Green Wall ◽  
Edx Analysis ◽  
Green Walls

Abstract Today, one of the most pressing issues confronting the civilized and modern world is air pollution. Particulate matter (PM) is a well-known pollutant that contributes significantly to urban air pollution and has numerous short- and long-term adverse effects on human health. One method of reducing air pollution is to create green spaces, mainly green walls, as a short-term solution. The current study investigated the ability of nine plant species to reduce traffic-related PM using a green wall system installed along a busy road in Mashhad, Iran. The main aims were (1) estimate the tolerance level of plant species on green walls to air pollution using the Air pollution tolerance index (APTI); (2) assess the PM capture on the leaves of green wall species using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis and accumulation of heavy metals using Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP); (3) select the most tolerance species for reducing air pollution using Anticipated Performance Index (API). The plants' APTI values ranged from 5 to 12. The highest APTI value was found in Carpobrotus edulis and Rosmarinus officinalis, while Kochia Prostrata had the lowest. Among the APTI constituents, leaf water content (R2 = 0.29) and ascorbic acid (R2 = 0.33) had a positive effect on APTI. According to SEM analysis, many PM were adsorbed on the adaxial and abaxial leaf surfaces, as well as near the stomata of Lavandula angustifolia, C. edulis, Vinca minor, and Hylotelephium sp. Based on EDX analysis, carbon and oxygen formed the highest amount (more than 60%) of metals detected in the elemental composition of PM deposited on the leaves of all species. The Sedum reflexum had the highest Cr, Fe, Pb, and As accumulation. The concentrations of all heavy metals studied in green wall plants were higher than in the control sample. Furthermore, the C. edulis is the best plant for planting in industrial, urban areas of the city based on APTI, biological, economic, and social characteristics. It concludes that the use of green walls composed primarily of plants with small leaves can significantly adsorb PM and accumulation of heavy metal.

Analysis of movement of persons with disabilities during evacuation by lift

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 209-220
Author(s):  
Martin Szénay ◽  
Martin Lopušniak
Keyword(s):  
Computational Models ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Entire Process ◽  
Injured Person ◽  
Impaired People ◽  
Movement Parameters ◽  
The Times ◽  
Mobility Impaired

Abstract Lifts are indispensable for the evacuation of mobility-impaired people from buildings in case of emergency. It is necessary to quantify the movement parameters of these people and describe the entire process using a suitable algorithm. The aim of the research was to quantify the times and speeds of movement for a person using a wheelchair and for an injured person. An experiment in situ was used. During the experiment, arrivals at the lift, cabin entries, and exits were monitored. The results include the times and speeds of a mobility-impaired person's movement. The experiments showed that a person using a wheelchair was slower than an injured person. The results can be used to expand computational models to account for the possibility of using lifts for evacuation.

scholarly journals The impact of measures to reduce ambient air PM<sub>10</sub> concentrations originating from road dust, evaluated for a street canyon in Helsinki

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (17) ◽  
pp. 11199-11212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Stojiljkovic ◽  
Mari Kauhaniemi ◽  
Jaakko Kukkonen ◽  
Kaarle Kupiainen ◽  
Ari Karppinen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Street Canyon ◽  
Dust Emission ◽  
Road Dust ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Air Quality Measurements ◽  
Emission Models ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Quality Measurements

Abstract. We have numerically evaluated how effective selected potential measures would be for reducing the impact of road dust on ambient air particulate matter (PM10). The selected measures included a reduction of the use of studded tyres on light-duty vehicles and a reduction of the use of salt or sand for traction control. We have evaluated these measures for a street canyon located in central Helsinki for four years (2007–2009 and 2014). Air quality measurements were conducted in the street canyon for two years, 2009 and 2014. Two road dust emission models, NORTRIP (NOn-exhaust Road TRaffic Induced Particle emissions) and FORE (Forecasting Of Road dust Emissions), were applied in combination with the Operational Street Pollution Model (OSPM), a street canyon dispersion model, to compute the street increments of PM10 (i.e. the fraction of PM10 concentration originating from traffic emissions at the street level) within the street canyon. The predicted concentrations were compared with the air quality measurements. Both road dust emission models reproduced the seasonal variability of the PM10 concentrations fairly well but under-predicted the annual mean values. It was found that the largest reductions of concentrations could potentially be achieved by reducing the fraction of vehicles that use studded tyres. For instance, a 30 % decrease in the number of vehicles using studded tyres would result in an average decrease in the non-exhaust street increment of PM10 from 10 % to 22 %, depending on the model used and the year considered. Modelled contributions of traction sand and salt to the annual mean non-exhaust street increment of PM10 ranged from 4 % to 20 % for the traction sand and from 0.1 % to 4 % for the traction salt. The results presented here can be used to support the development of optimal strategies for reducing high springtime particulate matter concentrations originating from road dust.

scholarly journals Geochemical and Mineralogical Characteristics of Airborne Particulate Matter in Relation to Human Health Risk

Minerals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 866 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marzena Rachwał ◽  
Małgorzata Wawer ◽  
Mariola Jabłońska ◽  
Wioletta Rogula-Kozłowska ◽  
Patrycja Rogula-Kopiec
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Susceptibility ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Magnetic Particles ◽  
Rank Order ◽  
Human Health Risk ◽  
Airborne Particulate Matter ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Average Concentration ◽  
Health Indices

The main objective of this research was the determination of the geochemical and mineralogical properties of particulate matter: TSP (total suspended particles) and, especially PM1 (particles with aerodynamic diameter not greater than 1 µm) suspended in the air of a selected urban area in southern Poland. Identification of the emission sources of metals and metalloids bound in TSP and PM1 as well as the assessment of potential risk of urban ambient air to human health using hazard indices was an additional aim of this investigation. The daily TSP and PM1 quartz fiber filters collected during heating season were subjected to mass magnetic susceptibility (χ) measurements, SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy) observations and geochemical analyses. Obtained results revealed that the concentration of TSP and PM1 well correlated with their mass-specific magnetic susceptibility. The good relationship between the PM concentration and χ suggests that magnetic susceptibility measurements can be a good proxy of low-level atmospheric dust pollution. The rank order of potentially toxic elements (PTE) based on average concentration was Ba > Zn > Al > Fe > Pb > Mn > Ti > Cu > Cr > Ni >As > Cd > V > Tl, both for TSP and PM1. PM1/TSP ratios for PTE concentrations and χ were around or slightly above unity, which indicated that PM1 was the main carrier of PTE (with the exception of cadmium, copper and lead) and technogenic magnetic particles. The non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks were confirmed by very high values of human health indices.

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