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Special Issue "Atmospheric Pollutants: Characteristics, Sources and Transport"

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A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Air Quality".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 November 2023 | Viewed by 2657

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Chengzhi Xing

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Guest Editor

Key Lab of Environmental Optics & Technology, Anhui Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
Interests: stereoscopic remote sensing; instrument technology; aerosol; nitrous acid; ozone; source analysis; atmospheric oxidation capacity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Yan Xiang

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Guest Editor

Institutes of Physical Science and Information Technology, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China
Interests: stereoscopic observation; lidar; atmospheric chemistry model; data assimilation; machine learning

Dr. Qihua Li

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Guest Editor

Institutes of Physical Science and Information Technology, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China
Interests: MAX-DOAS; air pollutants profile; optical remote sensing; neural network; downscaling

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Air pollution sources can be roughly classified into direct emissions, secondary production and transport. Transportation can directly deteriorate the environment through the production and emission of a large number of pollutants. The movement of warm and humid air masses likely increases secondary aerosol formation by aggravating aqueous and heterogeneous reactions. Moreover, the variation in atmospheric oxidation capacity could also deeply influence several pollution processes; therefore, it is also critical to understand the source, distribution and transport process of atmospheric oxidants. In addition, considering their health risk to humans, it is also necessary to study the human health effects of different air pollutants. Field observations and model simulations are two important methods to understand the characteristics, physicochemical processes and transport processes of air pollutants. Thus, we also strongly encourage authors to use advanced observation technologies (satellite remote sensing, Lidar, MAX-DOAS, etc.), analysis schemes (e.g., big data and machine learning), instruments and models during their studies.

Solicited contributions include, but are not limited to, studies on the characteristics, sources and transport analysis of air pollutants through measurements and simulations. Research on environmental monitoring instruments and models is also encouraged. We invite authors to submit original research or to review previous work and summarize the current state of the science. Submissions of research work by multi-country groups are of significant interest.

Dr. Chengzhi Xing
Dr. Yan Xiang
Dr. Qihua Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

stereoscopic observation
model
remote sensing
source analysis
transport
data assimilation
machine learning
aerosol
trace gases
atmospheric oxidation capacity
human health

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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Open AccessArticle

Ground-Based MAX-DOAS Observation of Trace Gases from 2019 to 2021 in Huaibei, China

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Atmosphere 2023, 14(4), 739; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14040739 - 19 Apr 2023

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Abstract

With the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the implementation of closure measures in 2020, population mobility and human activities have decreased, which has seriously impacted atmospheric quality. Huaibei City is an important coal and chemical production base in East China, which faces increasing environmental problems. The impact of anthropogenic activities on air quality in this area was investigated by comparing the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 with the normal situation in 2021. Tropospheric NO₂, HCHO and SO₂ column densities were observed by ground-based multiple axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS). In situ measurements for PM_2.5, NO₂, SO₂ and O₃ were also taken. The observation period was divided into four phases, the pre-lockdown period, phase 1 lockdown, phase 2 lockdown and the post-lockdown period. Ground-based MAX-DOAS results showed that tropospheric NO₂, HCHO and SO₂ column densities increased by 41, 14 and 14%, respectively, during phase 1 in 2021 vs. 2020. In situ results showed that NO₂ and SO₂ increased by 59 and 11%, respectively, during phase 1 in 2021 vs. 2020, but PM_2.5 and O₃ decreased by 15 and 17%, respectively. In the phase 2 period, due to the partial lifting of control measures, the concentration of pollutants did not significantly change. The weekly MAX-DOAS results showed that there was no obvious weekend effect of pollutants in the Huaibei area, and NO₂, HCHO and SO₂ had obvious diurnal variation characteristics. In addition, the relationship between the column densities and wind speed and direction in 2020 and 2021 was studied. The results showed that, in the absence of traffic control in 2021, elevated sources in the Eastern part of the city emitted large amounts of NO₂. The observed ratios of HCHO to NO₂ suggested that tropospheric ozone production involved NO_X-limited scenarios. The correlation analysis between HCHO and different gases showed that HCHO mainly originated from primary emission sources related to SO₂. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Atmospheric Pollutants: Characteristics, Sources and Transport)

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Open AccessArticle

Impact of Water-Based Coating Substitution on VOCs Emission Characteristics for the Surface-Coating Industries and Policy Effectiveness: A Case Study in Jiangsu Province, China

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Atmosphere 2023, 14(4), 662; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14040662 - 31 Mar 2023

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Abstract

As solvent-based coatings are gradually phasing out in China, the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emission characteristics of surface-coating industries have changed rapidly. Sector-based field measurements were conducted to build VOCs emission factors and source profiles of surface-coating industries in Jiangsu Province. A VOCs emission inventory was developed, and the projections for 2020 to 2030 were set. It was found that VOCs content in water-based coatings is 50.8% of solvent-based coatings on average. VOCs emission factors of solvent-based coatings ranged from 0.40 to 0.51 kg kg⁻¹, while those of water-based coatings ranged from 0.14 to 0.24 kg kg⁻¹. Compared to solvent-based coatings, the proportion of aromatics emitted from water-based coatings was 44.2% lower, while the proportion of oxygenated VOCs (OVOCs) was 11.6% higher. The results showed that VOCs emissions were about 134 Gg in Jiangsu Province in 2020, of which the solvent-based coating sources contributed 79.6% of the total. Aromatics were the main species contributing 52.9% of VOCs emissions and 85.9% of ozone formation potential (OFP). According to emission prediction results of four scenarios, the emission reduction of implementing low-content VOCs coating substitution is 8.7% higher than that of adopting the best available end-of-pipe treatment measures by 2030. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Atmospheric Pollutants: Characteristics, Sources and Transport)

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Open AccessArticle

Forecasting Air Quality in Tripoli: An Evaluation of Deep Learning Models for Hourly PM_2.5 Surface Mass Concentrations

Marwa Winis Misbah Esager

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Kamil Demirberk Ünlü

Atmosphere 2023, 14(3), 478; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14030478 - 28 Feb 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 962

Abstract

In this article, we aimed to study the forecasting of hourly PM2.5 surface mass concentrations in the city of Tripoli, Libya. We employed three state-of-the-art deep learning models, namely long short-term memory, gated recurrent unit, and convolutional neural networks, to forecast PM2.5 levels using univariate time series methodology. Our results revealed that the convolutional neural networks model performed the best, with a coefficient of variation of 99% and a mean absolute percentage error of 0.04. These findings provide valuable insights into the use of deep learning models for forecasting PM2.5 and can inform decision-making regarding air quality management in the city of Tripoli. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Atmospheric Pollutants: Characteristics, Sources and Transport)

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Microplastic Pollution Research Based on the VOS Viewer Software: Research Trends, Ecological Effects, and Testing Methods

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Atmosphere 2023, 14(5), 838; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14050838 - 08 May 2023

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Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) are receiving increasing attention because of their potential harm to the environment and human health. This research aims to summarize the abundance, toxicological effects, and analysis methods of MPs, as well as present their current status and trends in scientific research. Bibliometric analysis confirmed a substantial rise in annual research papers on MPs, predominantly over the previous nine years. The central research areas relating to MPs include distribution, sources, toxic effects, analytical approaches, and adsorption of MPs with other pollutants. Airborne MPs are a primary source of microplastic pollution in remote areas. Humans may inhale and ingest MPs, leading to the accumulation of these particles in their bodies. Additionally, microplastics can have biological toxicity that poses a potential threat to human health. Standard procedures for sampling and both qualitative and quantitative analysis of microplastics in various environmental media must be established urgently to enable effective comparison of experimental conclusions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Atmospheric Pollutants: Characteristics, Sources and Transport)

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