scholarly journals Quantifying the emission changes and associated air quality impacts during the COVID-19 pandemic in North China Plain: a response modeling study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jia Xing ◽  
Siwei Li ◽  
Yueqi Jiang ◽  
Shuxiao Wang ◽  
Dian Ding ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Time Estimation ◽  
Nox Emission ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Spring Festival ◽  
Emission Changes ◽  
Quality Response

Abstract. Quantification of emission changes is a prerequisite for the assessment of control effectiveness in improving air quality. However, the traditional bottom-up method for characterizing emissions requires detailed investigation of emissions data (e.g., activity and other emission parameters) that usually takes months to perform and limits timely assessments. Here we propose a novel method to address this issue by using a response model that provides real-time estimation of emission changes based on air quality observations in combination with emission-concentration response functions derived from chemical transport modeling. We applied the new method to quantify the emission changes in the North China Plain (NCP) due to the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, which overlapped the Spring Festival holiday. Results suggest that the anthropogenic emissions of NO2, SO2, VOC, and primary PM2.5 in NCP were reduced by 51 %, 28 %, 67 % and 63 %, respectively, due to the COVID-19 shutdown, indicating longer and stronger shutdown effects in 2020 compared to the previous Spring Festival holiday. The reductions of VOC and primary PM2.5 emissions are generally effective in reducing O3 and PM2.5 concentrations. However, such air quality improvements are largely offset by reductions in NOx emissions. NOx emission reductions lead to increases in O3 and PM2.5 concentrations in NCP due to the strongly VOC-limited conditions in winter. A strong NH3-rich condition is also suggested from the air quality response to the substantial NOx emission reduction. Well-designed control strategies are recommended based on the air quality response associated with the unexpected emission changes during the COVID-19 period. In addition, our results demonstrate that the new response-based inversion model can well capture emission changes based on variations in ambient concentrations, and thereby illustrate the great potential for improving the accuracy and efficiency of bottom-up emission inventory methods.

scholarly journals Quantifying the emission changes and associated air quality impacts during the COVID-19 pandemic on the North China Plain: a response modeling study

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (22) ◽  
pp. 14347-14359
Author(s):  
Jia Xing ◽  
Siwei Li ◽  
Yueqi Jiang ◽  
Shuxiao Wang ◽  
Dian Ding ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Nox Emission ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Spring Festival ◽  
Emission Changes ◽  
Quality Response

Abstract. Quantification of emission changes is a prerequisite for the assessment of control effectiveness in improving air quality. However, the traditional bottom-up method for characterizing emissions requires detailed investigation of emissions data (e.g., activity and other emission parameters) that usually takes months to perform and limits timely assessments. Here we propose a novel method to address this issue by using a response model that provides real-time estimation of emission changes based on air quality observations in combination with emission-concentration response functions derived from chemical transport modeling. We applied the new method to quantify the emission changes on the North China Plain (NCP) due to the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, which overlapped the Spring Festival (also known as Chinese New Year) holiday. Results suggest that the anthropogenic emissions of NO2, SO2, volatile organic compound (VOC) and primary PM2.5 on the NCP were reduced by 51 %, 28 %, 67 % and 63 %, respectively, due to the COVID-19 shutdown, indicating longer and stronger shutdown effects in 2020 compared to the previous Spring Festival holiday. The reductions of VOC and primary PM2.5 emissions are generally effective in reducing O3 and PM2.5 concentrations. However, such air quality improvements are largely offset by reductions in NOx emissions. NOx emission reductions lead to increases in O3 and PM2.5 concentrations on the NCP due to the strongly VOC-limited conditions in winter. A strong NH3-rich condition is also suggested from the air quality response to the substantial NOx emission reduction. Well-designed control strategies are recommended based on the air quality response associated with the unexpected emission changes during the COVID-19 period. In addition, our results demonstrate that the new response-based inversion model can well capture emission changes based on variations in ambient concentrations and thereby illustrate the great potential for improving the accuracy and efficiency of bottom-up emission inventory methods.

scholarly journals Aerosol transport pathways and source attribution in China during the COVID-19 outbreak

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lili Ren ◽  
Yang Yang ◽  
Hailong Wang ◽  
Pinya Wang ◽  
Lei Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Eastern China ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
Aerosol Transport ◽  
Anthropogenic Aerosol ◽  
Transport Pathways ◽  
Local Emissions

Abstract. Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, human activities and industrial productions were strictly restricted during January–March 2020 in China. Despite the fact that anthropogenic aerosol emissions largely decreased, haze events still occurred. Characterization of aerosol transport pathways and attribution of aerosol sources from specific regions are beneficial to the air quality and pandemic control strategies. This study establishes source-receptor relationships in various regions of China during the COVID-19 outbreak based on the Community Atmosphere Model version 5 with Explicit Aerosol Source Tagging (CAM5-EAST). Our analysis shows that PM2.5 burden over the North China Plain between January 30 and February 19 is largely contributed by local emissions (40–66 %). For other regions in China, PM2.5 burden is largely contributed from non-local sources. During the polluted days of COVID-19 outbreak, local emissions within North China Plain and Eastern China, respectively, contribute 66 % and 87 % to the increase in surface PM2.5 concentrations. This is associated with the anomalous mid-tropospheric high pressure at the location of climatological East Asia trough and the consequently weakened winds in the lower troposphere, leading to the local aerosol accumulation. The emissions outside China, especially from South and Southeast Asia, contribute over 50 % to the increase in PM2.5 concentration in Southwestern China through transboundary transport during the polluted day. As the reduction in emissions in the near future, aerosols from long-range transport together with unfavorable meteorological conditions are increasingly important to regional air quality and need to be taken into account in clean air plans.

scholarly journals A new approach to estimate pollutant emissions based on trajectory modelling and its application in the North China Plain

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 31137-31158 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Y. Xu ◽  
C. S. Zhao ◽  
P. F. Liu ◽  
L. Ran ◽  
N. Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Pollutant Emissions ◽  
New Approach ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Source Contributions ◽  
Co Emission

Abstract. Emission information is crucial for air quality modelling and air quality management. In this study, a new approach based on the understanding of the relationship between emissions and measured pollutant concentrations has been proposed to estimate pollutant emissions and source contributions. The retrieval can be made with single point in-situ measurements combined with backward trajectory analyses. The method takes into consideration the effect of meteorology on pollutant transport when evaluating contributions and is independent of energy statistics, therefore can provide frequent updates on emission information. The spatial coverage can be further improved by using measurements from several sites and combining the derived emission fields. The method was applied to yield the source distributions of black carbon (BC) and CO in the North China Plain (NCP) using in-situ measurements from the HaChi (Haze in China) Campaign and to evaluate contributions from specific areas to local concentrations at the measurement site. Results show that this method can yield a reasonable emission field for the NCP and can directly quantify areal source contributions. Major BC and CO emission source regions are Beijing, the western part of Tianjin and Langfang, Hebei, with Tangshan being an additional important CO emission source area. The source contribution assessment suggests that, aside from local emissions in Wuqing, Tianjin and Hebei S, SW (d < 100 km) are the greatest contributors to measured local concentrations, while emissions from Beijing contribute little during summertime.

scholarly journals Insights into particulate matter pollution in the North China Plain during wintertime: Local contribution or regional transport?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiarui Wu ◽  
Naifang Bei ◽  
Yuan Wang ◽  
Xia Li ◽  
Suixin Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Source Apportionment ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Regional Transport ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Haze Event ◽  
Non Local ◽  
Local Emissions

Abstract. Accurate identification and quantitative source apportionment of fine particulate matters (PM2.5) provide an important prerequisite for design and implementation of emission control strategies to reduce PM pollution. Therefore, a source-oriented version of the WRF-Chem model is developed in the study to make source apportionment of PM2.5 in the North China Plain (NCP). A persistent and heavy haze event occurred in the NCP from 05 December 2015 to 04 January 2016 is simulated using the model as a case study to quantify PM2.5 contributions of local emissions and regional transport. Results show that local and non-local emissions contribute 36.3 % and 63.7 % of the PM2.5 mass in Beijing during the haze event on average. When Beijing's air quality is excellent or good in terms of hourly PM2.5 concentrations, local emissions dominate the PM2.5 mass with contributions exceeding 50 %. However, when the air quality is severely polluted, the PM2.5 contribution of non-local emissions is around 75 %. The non-local emissions also dominate the Tianjin's air quality, with average PM2.5 contributions exceeding 70 %. The PM2.5 level in Hebei and Shandong is generally controlled by local emissions, but in Henan, local and non-local emissions play an almost equivalent role in the PM2.5 level, except when the air quality is severely polluted, with non-local PM2.5 contributions of over 60 %. Additionally, the primary aerosol species are generally dominated by local emissions with the average contribution exceeding 50%. However, the source apportionment of secondary aerosols shows more evident regional characteristics. Therefore, except cooperation with neighboring provinces to carry out strict emission mitigation measures, reducing primary aerosols constitutes the priority to alleviate PM pollution in the NCP, especially in Beijing and Tianjin.

scholarly journals Measurement report: Evaluation of sources and mixing state of black carbon aerosol under the background of emission reduction in the North China Plain: implications for radiative effect

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiyuan Wang ◽  
Li Li ◽  
Jiamao Zhou ◽  
Jianhuai Ye ◽  
Wenting Dai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Solid Fuel ◽  
Emission Reduction ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Fossil Fuel ◽  
Radiative Effect ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Fuel Source

Abstract. Accurate understanding of sources and mixing state of black carbon (BC) aerosol is essential for assessing its impacts on air quality and climatic effect. Here, a winter campaign (December 2017–January 2018) was conducted in the North China Plain (NCP) to evaluate the sources, coating composition, and radiative effect of BC under the background of emission reduction since 2013. Results show that liquid fossil fuel source (i.e., traffic emission) and solid fuel source (i.e., biomass and coal burning) contributed 69 % and 31 % to the total BC mass, respectively, using a multiwavelength optical approach combined with the source-based aerosol absorption Ångström exponent values. The air quality model indicates that local emission was the dominant contributor to BC at the measurement site on average, however, emissions in the NCP exerted a critical role for high BC episode. Six classes of BC-containing particles were identified, including (1) BC coated by organic carbon and sulphate (52 % of total BC-containing particles), (2) BC coated by Na and K (24 %), (3) BC coated by K, sulphate, and nitrate (17 %), (4) BC associated with biomass burning (6 %), (5) Pure-BC (1 %), and (6) others (1 %). Different BC sources had distinct impacts on those BC-containing particles. A radiative transfer model estimated that the amount of BC detected can produce an atmospheric forcing of +18.0 W m−2 and a heating rate of 0.5 K day−1. Results presented herein highlight that further reduction of solid fuel combustion-related BC may be a more effective way to mitigate regional warming in the NCP, although larger BC contribution was from liquid fossil fuel source.

How aerosol transport from the North China plain contributes to air quality in northeast China

2020 ◽  
Vol 738 ◽  
pp. 139555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hujia Zhao ◽  
Huizheng Che ◽  
Lei Zhang ◽  
Ke Gui ◽  
Yanjun Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Northeast China ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Aerosol Transport ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain

Preview of the future application of the environmental geo-satellites data using aircraft platform: Estimation of anthropogenic VOC emissions from formaldehyde columns

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rokjin Park ◽  
Hyeong-Ahn Kwon ◽  
Yujin Oak
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Future Application ◽  
Air Quality Model ◽  
Quality Model ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Vertical Column ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Ozone Sensitivity ◽  
Emission Changes

&lt;p&gt;The Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer (GEMS) will be launched in February 2020 and will provide hourly observations of atmospheric compositions in the daytime. Prior to the GEMS launch, we explore an application of GEMS data as constraints for estimating anthropogenic volatile organic compound (AVOC) emissions in South Korea using formaldehyde (HCHO) vertical column densities observations from the Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) onboard the B200 aircraft during the KORUS-AQ campaign. Our top-down estimates of total AVOC emissions are higher by a factor of four over the petrochemical industries compared to the bottom-up emissions. However, the national AVOC emissions from the top-down estimates are by 37% lower than those of the bottom-up emission inventory in South Korea. We also show that hourly column observations of HCHO can improve not only the total magnitude of AVOC emissions but also their diurnal variation, which is poorly constrained and used in air quality models. Our hourly estimates of AVOC emissions may, thus, improve air quality model simulations in which the simulated ozone sensitivity to AVOC emission changes are also investigated.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals Investigations of temporal and spatial distribution of precursors SO<sub>2</sub> and NO<sub>2</sub> vertical columns in the North China Plain using mobile DOAS

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 1535-1554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fengcheng Wu ◽  
Pinhua Xie ◽  
Ang Li ◽  
Fusheng Mou ◽  
Hao Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Distribution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Emission Sources ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Distribution ◽  
Air Mass ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Temporal And Spatial

Abstract. Recently, Chinese cities have suffered severe events of haze air pollution, particularly in the North China Plain (NCP). Investigating the temporal and spatial distribution of pollutants, emissions, and pollution transport is necessary to better understand the effect of various sources on air quality. We report on mobile differential optical absorption spectroscopy (mobile DOAS) observations of precursors SO2 and NO2 vertical columns in the NCP in the summer of 2013 (from 11 June to 7 July) in this study. The different temporal and spatial distributions of SO2 and NO2 vertical column density (VCD) over this area are characterized under various wind fields. The results show that transport from the southern NCP strongly affects air quality in Beijing, and the transport route, particularly SO2 transport on the route of Shijiazhuang–Baoding–Beijing, is identified. In addition, the major contributors to SO2 along the route of Shijiazhuang–Baoding–Beijing are elevated sources compared to low area sources for the route of Dezhou–Cangzhou–Tianjin–Beijing; this is found using the interrelated analysis between in situ and mobile DOAS observations during the measurement periods. Furthermore, the discussions on hot spots near the city of JiNan show that average observed width of polluted air mass is 11.83 and 17.23 km associated with air mass diffusion, which is approximately 60 km away from emission sources based on geometrical estimation. Finally, a reasonable agreement exists between the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) and mobile DOAS observations, with a correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.65 for NO2 VCDs. Both datasets also have a similar spatial pattern. The fitted slope of 0.55 is significantly less than unity, which can reflect the contamination of local sources, and OMI observations are needed to improve the sensitivities to the near-surface emission sources through improvements of the retrieval algorithm or the resolution of satellites.

scholarly journals Measurement report: Variations in surface SO<sub>2</sub> and NO<sub>x</sub> mixing ratios from 2004 to 2016 at a background site in the North China Plain

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xueli Liu ◽  
Liang Ran ◽  
Weili Lin ◽  
Xiaobin Xu ◽  
Zhiqiang Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North China Plain ◽  
North China ◽  
Diurnal Variations ◽  
Nox Emission ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
The North ◽  
The North China Plain ◽  
Regional Background ◽  
Long Term Trends

Abstract. Strict air pollution control strategies have been implemented in recent decades in the North China Plain (NCP), previously one of the most polluted regions in the world, and have resulted in considerable changes in emissions of air pollutants. However, little is so far known about the long-term trends of the regional background level of NOx and SO2, along with the increase and decrease processes of regional emissions. In this study, the seasonal and diurnal variations of NOx and SO2 as well as their long-term trends at a regional background station in the NCP were characterized from 2004 to 2016. On average, SO2 and NOx mixing ratios were 5.7 ± 8.4 ppb and 14.2 ± 12.4 ppb, respectively. The seasonal variations in SO2 and NOx mixing ratios showed a similar pattern with a peak in winter and a valley in summer. However, the diurnal variations in SO2 and NOx mixing ratios greatly differed for all seasons, indicating different sources for SO2 and NOx. Overall, the annual mean SO2 exhibited a significant decreasing trend of ‒6.1 % yr−1 (R = −0.84, P < 0.01) from 2004 to 2016, which is very close to −6.3 % yr−1 of the annual SO2 emission in Beijing, and a greater decreasing trend of −7.4 % yr−1 (R = −0.95, P < 0.01) from 2008 to 2016. The annual mean of NOx showed a fluctuating rise of +3.4 % yr−1 (R = 0.38, P = 0.40) from 2005 to 2010, reaching the peak value (16.9 ppb) in 2010, and then exhibited an extremely significant fluctuating downward trend of −4.5 % yr−1 (R = 0.95, P < 0.01) from 2010 to 2016. After 2010, the annual mean NOx mixing ratios correlated significantly (R = 0.94, P < 0.01) with the annual NOx emission in North China. The decreasing rate (−4.8 % yr−1, R = −0.92, P < 0.01) of the annual mean NOx mixing ratios from 2011 to 2016 at SDZ are lower than the one (−8.8 % yr−1, R = −0.94, P < 0.01) for the annual NOx emission in the NCP and (−9.0 % yr−1, R = −0.96, P < 0.01) in Beijing. It indicated that surface NOx mixing ratios at SDZ had weaker influence than SO2 by the emission reduction in Beijing and its surrounding areas in the NCP. The increase in the amount of motor vehicles led to an increase in traffic emissions for NOx. This study supported conclusions from previous studies that the measures taken for controlling NOx and SO2 in the NCP in the past decades were generally successful. However, NOx emission control should be strengthened in the future.

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