scholarly journals Evaluation of two isoprene emission models for use in a long-range air pollution model

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (16) ◽  
pp. 7399-7412 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Zare ◽  
J. H. Christensen ◽  
P. Irannejad ◽  
J. Brandt
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
Direct Evaluation ◽  
Biogenic Emission ◽  
Isoprene Emission ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Emission Models ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Knowledge about isoprene emissions and concentration distribution is important for chemistry transport models (CTMs), because isoprene acts as a precursor for tropospheric ozone and subsequently affects the atmospheric concentrations of many other atmospheric compounds. Isoprene has a short lifetime, and hence it is very difficult to evaluate its emission estimates against measurements. For this reason, we coupled two isoprene emission models with the Danish Eulerian Hemispheric Model (DEHM), and evaluated the simulated background ozone concentrations based on different models for isoprene emissions. In this research, results of using the two global biogenic emission models; GEIA (Global Emissions Inventory Activity) and MEGAN (the global Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature) are compared and evaluated. The total annual emissions of isoprene for the year 2006 estimated by using MEGAN is 592 Tg yr−1 for an extended area of the Northern Hemisphere, which is 21% higher than that estimated by using GEIA. The overall feature of the emissions from the two models is quite similar, but differences are found mainly in Africa's savannah and in the southern part of North America. Differences in spatial distribution of emission factors are found to be a key source of these discrepancies. In spite of the short life-time of isoprene, a direct evaluation of isoprene concentrations using the two biogenic emission models in DEHM has been made against available measurements in Europe. Results show an agreement between two models simulations and the measurements in general and that the CTM is able to simulate isoprene concentrations. Additionally, investigation of ozone concentrations resulting from the two biogenic emission models show that isoprene simulated by MEGAN strongly affects the ozone production in the African savannah; the effect is up to 10% more than that obtained using GEIA. In contrast, the impact of using GEIA is higher in the Amazon region with more than 8% higher ozone concentrations compared to that of using MEGAN. Comparing the ozone concentrations obtained by DEHM using the two different isoprene models with measurements from Europe and North America, show an agreement on the hourly, mean daily and daily maximum values. However, the average of ozone daily maximum value simulated by using MEGAN is slightly closer to the measured value for the average of all measuring sites in Europe.

scholarly journals Evaluation of two isoprene emission models for use in a long-range air pollution model

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 9247-9281 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Zare ◽  
J. Brandt ◽  
J. H. Christensen ◽  
P. Irannejad
Keyword(s):  
Model Performance ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Emission Model ◽  
Direct Evaluation ◽  
Biogenic Emission ◽  
Isoprene Emission ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Emission Models ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Knowledge about isoprene emissions and concentration distribution is important for chemistry transport models (CTMs), because isoprene acts as a precursor for tropospheric ozone and subsequently affects the atmospheric concentrations of many other atmospheric compounds. Isoprene has a short lifetime, and hence it is very difficult to evaluate its emission estimates against measurements. For this reason, we coupled two isoprene emission models with the Danish Eulerian Hemispheric Model (DEHM), and evaluated the simulated background ozone concentrations based on different models for isoprene emissions. In this research, results of using the two global biogenic emission models; GEIA (Global Emissions Inventory Activity) and MEGAN (the global Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature) are compared and evaluated. The total annual emissions of isoprene for the year 2006 estimated by using MEGAN is 732 Tg yr−1 for an extended area of the Northern Hemisphere, which is 50% higher than that estimated by using GEIA. The overall feature of the emissions from the two models are quite similar, but significant differences are found mainly in Africa's savannah and the rain forests of South America, and in some subtropical regions, such as the Middle East, India and the southern part of North America. Differences in spatial distribution of emission factors are found to be a key source of these discrepancies. In spite of the short life-time of isoprene, a direct evaluation of isoprene concentrations using the two biogenic emission models has been made against available measurements in Europe. Results show that the two models in general represent the measurements well and that the CTM is able to simulate isoprene concentrations. Additionally, investigation of ozone concentrations resulting from the two biogenic emission models show that isoprene simulated by MEGAN strongly affects the ozone production in the African savannah; the effect is up to 20% more than that obtained using GEIA. In contrast, the impact of using GEIA is higher in the Amazon region with more than 15% higher ozone concentrations compared to that of using MEGAN. Comparing the results for ozone concentrations for Europe obtained by using the two different models with measurements, show that the MEGAN emission model improves the model performance significantly in the Mediterranean area.

scholarly journals A simple modeling approach to study the regional impact of a Mediterranean forest isoprene emission on anthropogenic plumes

2005 ◽  
Vol 5 (7) ◽  
pp. 1915-1929 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Cortinovis ◽  
F. Solmon ◽  
D. Serça ◽  
C. Sarrat ◽  
R. Rosset
Keyword(s):  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Surface Concentration ◽  
Mediterranean Ecosystems ◽  
Tropospheric Chemistry ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Anthropogenic Sources ◽  
Biogenic Emission ◽  
Maximum Surface ◽  
Isoprene Emission ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Research during the past decades has outlined the importance of biogenic isoprene emission in tropospheric chemistry and regional ozone photo-oxidant pollution. The first part of this article focuses on the development and validation of a simple biogenic emission scheme designed for regional studies. Experimental data sets relative to Boreal, Tropical, Temperate and Mediterranean ecosystems are used to estimate the robustness of the scheme at the canopy scale, and over contrasted climatic and ecological conditions. A good agreement is generally found when comparing field measurements and simulated emission fluxes, encouraging us to consider the model suitable for regional application. Limitations of the scheme are nevertheless outlined as well as further on-going improvements. In the second part of the article, the emission scheme is used on line in the broader context of a meso-scale atmospheric chemistry model. Dynamically idealized simulations are carried out to study the chemical interactions of pollutant plumes with realistic isoprene emissions coming from a Mediterranean oak forest. Two types of anthropogenic sources, respectively representative of the Marseille (urban) and Martigues (industrial) French Mediterranean sites, and both characterized by different VOC/NOx are considered. For the Marseille scenario, the impact of biogenic emission on ozone production is larger when the forest is situated in a sub-urban configuration (i.e. downwind distance TOWN-FOREST <30km, considering an advection velocity of 4.2 m.s-1). In this case the enhancement of ozone production due to isoprene can reach +37% in term of maximum surface concentrations and +11% in term of total ozone production. The impact of biogenic emission decreases quite rapidly when the TOWN-FOREST distance increases. For the Martigues scenario, the biogenic impact on the plume is significant up to TOWN-FOREST distance of 90km where the ozone maximum surface concentration enhancement can still reach +30%. For both cases, the importance of the VOC/NOx ratio in the anthropogenic plume and its evolution when interacting with the forest emission are outlined. In complement to real case studies, this idealized approach can be particularly useful for process and sensitivity studies and constitutes a valuable tool to build regional ozone control strategies.

scholarly journals Ozone response to emission changes: a modeling study during the MCMA-2006/MILAGRO campaign

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 23419-23463 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Song ◽  
W. Lei ◽  
N. Bei ◽  
M. Zavala ◽  
B. de Foy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Control Strategies ◽  
Monitoring Network ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
Chemical Production ◽  
Field Campaign ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Urban Core ◽  
Emission Changes

Abstract. The sensitivity of ozone production to precursor emissions was investigated under five different meteorological conditions in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) during the MCMA-2006/MILAGRO field campaign using the gridded photochemical model CAMx driven by observation-nudged WRF meteorology. Precursor emissions were constrained by the comprehensive data from the field campaign and the routine ambient air quality monitoring network. Simulated plume mixing and transport were examined by comparing with measurements from the G-1 aircraft during the campaign. The observed concentrations of ozone precursors and ozone were well reproduced by the model. The effects of reducing precursor emissions on urban ozone production were performed for three representative emission control strategies. A 50% reduction in VOC emissions led to 7 to 22 ppb decrease in daily maximum ozone concentrations, while a 50% reduction in NOx emissions leads to 4 to 21 ppb increase, and 50% reductions in both NOx and VOC emission decrease the daily maximum ozone concentrations up to 10 ppb. These results along with a chemical indicator analysis using the chemical production ratios of H2O2 to HNO3 demonstrate that the MCMA urban core region is VOC-limited for all meteorological episodes, which is consistent with the results from MCMA-2003 field campaign; however the degree of the VOC-sensitivity is higher in the MCMA-2006 due to lower VOC/NOx emission ratio and VOC reactivity. Ozone formation in the surrounding mountain/rural area is mostly NOx-limited, but can be VOC-limited, and the range of the NOx-limited or VOC-limited areas depends on meteorology.

scholarly journals Sensitivity of Surface Ozone Simulation to Cumulus Parameterization

2008 ◽  
Vol 47 (5) ◽  
pp. 1456-1466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhining Tao ◽  
Allen Williams ◽  
Ho-Chun Huang ◽  
Michael Caughey ◽  
Xin-Zhong Liang
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Cover ◽  
Surface Ozone ◽  
Meteorological Conditions ◽  
Cumulus Parameterization ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
Boundary Layer Height ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Simulated Precipitation ◽  
Cumulus Schemes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Different cumulus schemes cause significant discrepancies in simulated precipitation, cloud cover, and temperature, which in turn lead to remarkable differences in simulated biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOC) emissions and surface ozone concentrations. As part of an effort to investigate the impact (and its uncertainty) of climate changes on U.S. air quality, this study evaluates the sensitivity of BVOC emissions and surface ozone concentrations to the Grell (GR) and Kain–Fritsch (KF) cumulus parameterizations. Overall, using the KF scheme yields less cloud cover, larger incident solar radiation, warmer surface temperature, and higher boundary layer height and hence generates more BVOC emissions than those using the GR scheme. As a result, the KF (versus GR) scheme produces more than 10 ppb of summer mean daily maximum 8-h ozone concentration over broad regions, resulting in a doubling of the number of high-ozone occurrences. The contributions of meteorological conditions versus BVOC emissions on regional ozone sensitivities to the choice of the cumulus scheme largely offset each other in the California and Texas regions, but the contrast in BVOC emissions dominates over that in the meteorological conditions for ozone differences in the Midwest and Northeast regions. The result demonstrates the necessity of considering the uncertainty of future ozone projections that are identified with alternative model physics configurations.

scholarly journals Ozone response to emission changes: a modeling study during the MCMA-2006/MILAGRO Campaign

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 3827-3846 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Song ◽  
W. Lei ◽  
N. Bei ◽  
M. Zavala ◽  
B. de Foy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Monitoring Network ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Chemical Production ◽  
Field Campaign ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Urban Core ◽  
Emission Changes

Abstract. The sensitivity of ozone production to precursor emissions was investigated under five different meteorological conditions in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) during the MCMA-2006/MILAGRO field campaign using the gridded photochemical model CAMx driven by observation-nudged WRF meteorology. Precursor emissions were constrained by the comprehensive data from the field campaign and the routine ambient air quality monitoring network. Simulated plume mixing and transport were examined by comparing with measurements from the G-1 aircraft during the campaign. The observed concentrations of ozone precursors and ozone were reasonably well reproduced by the model. The effects of reducing precursor emissions on urban ozone production were performed for three representative emission control scenarios. A 50% reduction in VOC emissions led to 7 to 22 ppb decrease in daily maximum ozone concentrations, while a 50% reduction in NOx emissions leads to 4 to 21 ppb increase, and 50% reductions in both NOx and VOC emission decrease the daily maximum ozone concentrations up to 10 ppb. These results along with a chemical indicator analysis using the chemical production ratios of H2O2 to HNO3 demonstrate that the MCMA urban core region is VOC-limited for all meteorological episodes, which is consistent with the results from MCMA-2003 field campaign; however the degree of the VOC-sensitivity is higher during MCMA-2006 due to lower VOCs, lower VOC reactivity and moderately higher NOx emissions. Ozone formation in the surrounding mountain/rural area is mostly NOx-limited, but can be VOC-limited, and the range of the NOx-limited or VOC-limited areas depends on meteorology.

scholarly journals Changes of daily surface ozone maxima in Switzerland in all seasons from 1992 to 2002 and discussion of summer 2003

2005 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
pp. 1187-1203 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Ordóñez ◽  
H. Mathis ◽  
M. Furger ◽  
S. Henne ◽  
C. Hüglin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Statistical Model ◽  
Surface Ozone ◽  
Global Radiation ◽  
Vertical Mixing ◽  
Analysis Of Covariance ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Four Seasons ◽  
Lower Effect ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. An Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to derive the influence of the meteorological variability on the daily maximum ozone concentrations at 12 low-elevation sites north of the Alps in Switzerland during the four seasons in the 1992–2002 period. The afternoon temperature and the morning global radiation were the variables that accounted for most of the meteorological variability in summer and spring, while other variables that can be related to vertical mixing and dilution of primary pollutants (afternoon global radiation, wind speed, stability or day of the week) were more significant in winter. In addition, the number of days after a frontal passage was important to account for ozone build-up in summer and ozone destruction in winter. The statistical model proved to be a robust tool for reducing the impact of the meteorological variability on the ozone concentrations. The explained variance of the model, averaged over all stations, ranged from 60.2% in winter to 71.9% in autumn. The year-to-year variability of the seasonal medians of daily ozone maxima was reduced by 85% in winter, 60% in summer, and 50% in autumn and spring after the meteorological adjustment. For most stations, no significantly negative trends (at the 95% confidence level) of the summer medians of daily O3 or Ox (O3+NO2) maxima were found despite the significant reduction in the precursor emissions in Central Europe. However, significant downward trends in the summer 90th percentiles of daily Ox maxima were observed at 6 sites in the region around Zürich (on average −0.73 ppb yr-1 for those sites). The lower effect of the titration by NO as a consequence of the reduced emissions could partially explain the significantly positive O3 trends in the cold seasons (on average 0.69 ppb yr-1 in winter and 0.58 ppb yr-1 in autumn). The increase of Ox found for most stations in autumn (on average 0.23 ppb yr-1) and winter (on average 0.39 ppb yr-1) could be due to increasing European background ozone levels, in agreement with other studies. The statistical model was also able to explain the very high ozone concentrations in summer 2003, the warmest summer in Switzerland for at least ~150 years. On average, the measured daily ozone maximum was 15 ppb (nearly 29%) higher than in the reference period summer 1992–2002, corresponding to an excess of 5 standard deviations of the summer means of daily ozone maxima in that period.

scholarly journals A Lagrangian analysis of the impact of transport and transformation on the ozone stratification observed in the free troposphere during the ESCOMPTE campaign

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 1915-1951
Author(s):  
A. Colette ◽  
G. Ancellet ◽  
L. Menut ◽  
S. R. Arnold
Keyword(s):  
Initial Conditions ◽  
Average Rate ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Free Troposphere ◽  
Lagrangian Analysis ◽  
Air Masses ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Lagrangian Modeling ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. The ozone variability observed by tropospheric ozone lidars during the ESCOMPTE campaign is analyzed by means of a hybrid-Lagrangian modeling study. Transport processes responsible for the formation of ozone-rich layers are identified using a semi-Lagrangian analysis of mesoscale simulations to identify the planetary boundary layer (PBL) footprint in the free troposphere. High ozone concentrations are related to polluted air masses exported from the Iberian PBL. The chemical composition of air masses coming from the PBL and transported in the free troposphere is evaluated using a Lagrangian chemistry model. The initial concentrations are provided by a model of chemistry and transport. Different scenarios are tested for the initial conditions and for the impact of mixing with background air in order to perform a quantitative comparison with the lidar observations. For this meteorological situation, the characteristic mixing time is of the order of 2 to 5 days depending on the initial conditions. Ozone is produced in the free troposphere within most air masses exported from the Iberian PBL at an average rate of 0.2 ppbv h-1, with a maximum ozone production of 0.4 ppbv h-1. Transport processes from the PBL are responsible for an increase of 13.3 ppbv of ozone concentrations in the free troposphere compared to background levels; about 45% of this increase is attributed to in situ production during the transport rather than direct export of ozone.

scholarly journals On the temperature dependence of organic reactivity, nitrogen oxides, ozone production, and the impact of emission controls in San Joaquin Valley California

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 28511-28560 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Pusede ◽  
D. R. Gentner ◽  
P. J. Wooldridge ◽  
E. C. Browne ◽  
A. W. Rollins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Nitrogen Oxides ◽  
San Joaquin Valley ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Effective Control ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Daily Maximum Temperature ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Organic Reactivity

Abstract. The San Joaquin Valley (SJV) experiences some of the worst ozone air quality in the US, frequently exceeding the California 8 h standard of 70.4 ppb. To improve our understanding of trends in the number of ozone violations in the SJV, we analyze observed relationships between organic reactivity, nitrogen oxides (NOx), and daily maximum temperature in the southern SJV using measurements made as part of California at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change in 2010 (CalNex-SJV). We find the daytime speciated organic reactivity with respect to OH during CalNex-SJV has a temperature-independent portion with molecules typically associated with motor vehicles being the major component. At high temperatures, characteristic of days with high ozone, the largest portion of the total organic reactivity increases exponentially with temperature and is dominated by small, oxygenated organics and molecules that are unidentified. We use this simple temperature classification to consider changes in organic emissions over the last and next decade. With the CalNex-SJV observations as constraints, we examine the sensitivity of ozone production (PO3) to future NOx and organic reactivity controls. We find that PO3 is NOx-limited at all temperatures on weekends and on weekdays when daily maximum temperatures are greater than 29 °C. As a~consequence, NOx reductions are the most effective control option for reducing the frequency of future ozone violations in the southern SJV.

scholarly journals A Lagrangian analysis of the impact of transport and transformation on the ozone stratification observed in the free troposphere during the ESCOMPTE campaign

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (11) ◽  
pp. 3487-3503 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Colette ◽  
G. Ancellet ◽  
L. Menut ◽  
S. R. Arnold
Keyword(s):  
Initial Conditions ◽  
Average Rate ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Free Troposphere ◽  
Lagrangian Analysis ◽  
Air Masses ◽  
Ozone Concentrations ◽  
Lagrangian Modeling ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. The ozone variability observed by tropospheric ozone lidars during the ESCOMPTE campaign is analyzed by means of a hybrid-Lagrangian modeling study. Transport processes responsible for the formation of ozone-rich layers are identified using a semi-Lagrangian analysis of mesoscale simulations to identify the planetary boundary layer (PBL) footprint in the free troposphere. High ozone concentrations are related to polluted air masses exported from the Iberian PBL. The chemical composition of air masses coming from the PBL and transported in the free troposphere is evaluated using a Lagrangian chemistry model. The initial concentrations are provided by a model of chemistry and transport. Different scenarios are tested for the initial conditions and for the impact of mixing with background air in order to perform a quantitative comparison with the lidar observations. For this meteorological situation, the characteristic mixing time is of the order of 2 to 6 days depending on the initial conditions. Ozone is produced in the free troposphere within most air masses exported from the Iberian PBL at an average rate of 0.2 ppbv h−1, with a maximum ozone production of 0.4 ppbv h−1. Transport processes from the PBL are responsible for an increase of 13.3 ppbv of ozone concentrations in the free troposphere compared to background levels; about 45% of this increase is attributed to in situ production during the transport rather than direct export of ozone.

scholarly journals On the temperature dependence of organic reactivity, nitrogen oxides, ozone production, and the impact of emission controls in San Joaquin Valley, California

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 3373-3395 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Pusede ◽  
D. R. Gentner ◽  
P. J. Wooldridge ◽  
E. C. Browne ◽  
A. W. Rollins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Nitrogen Oxides ◽  
San Joaquin Valley ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
Effective Control ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Daily Maximum Temperature ◽  
Daily Maximum ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Organic Reactivity

Abstract. The San Joaquin Valley (SJV) experiences some of the worst ozone air quality in the US, frequently exceeding the California 8 h standard of 70.4 ppb. To improve our understanding of trends in the number of ozone violations in the SJV, we analyze observed relationships between organic reactivity, nitrogen oxides (NOx), and daily maximum temperature in the southern SJV using measurements made as part of California at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change in 2010 (CalNex-SJV). We find the daytime speciated organic reactivity with respect to OH during CalNex-SJV has a temperature-independent portion with molecules typically associated with motor vehicles being the major component. At high temperatures, characteristic of days with high ozone, the largest portion of the total organic reactivity increases exponentially with temperature and is dominated by small, oxygenated organics and molecules that are unidentified. We use this simple temperature classification to consider changes in organic emissions over the last and next decade. With the CalNex-SJV observations as constraints, we examine the sensitivity of ozone production (PO3) to future NOx and organic reactivity controls. We find that PO3 is NOx-limited at all temperatures on weekends and on weekdays when daily maximum temperatures are greater than 29 °C. As a consequence, NOx reductions are the most effective control option for reducing the frequency of future ozone violations in the southern SJV.

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