Indoor residential and outdoor sources of PM2.5 and PM10 in Nicosia, Cyprus
AbstractCyprus is a typical eastern Mediterranean country that suffers from local emissions, transported anthropogenic pollution, and dust storms all year round. Therefore, exposures to PM in ambient and residential micro-environments are of great public health concern. Our study collected indoor and outdoor PM2.5 and PM10 samples simultaneously in 22 houses in Nicosia, Cyprus, during warm seasons and cold seasons from February 2019 to May 2021. Samples were analyzed for mass and constituents ’ concentrations. To determine indoor and outdoor sources of PM in residential environments, we used the EPA positive matrix facto...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 23, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
A review of large-scale climate indicators (LSCI) and their environmental and health implications in the Mediterranean region
The objective of the present study is to gather and review relevant research on LSCI in the Mediterranean area to gain a better understanding of their impacts on atmospheric variability, climate, air quality, ecosystems, and health in the region. Numerous studies have explored LSCI and their effects in the study area, and our work aims to contribute to the existing literature in this context. Our study concludes that LSCI are linked to spatial atmospheric variability in the Mediterranean region. They influence the spatial and temporal distribution of climate and environmental variability, including temperature, rainfall, e...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 23, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Effective mitigation strategies for reducing workers ’ exposure to formaldehyde: a systematic review
AbstractFormaldehyde is a toxic and carcinogenic compound, still used in several occupational settings due to its properties. Thus, in these working scenarios, it is necessary to provide effective measures to reduce workers ’ exposure to formaldehyde. The aim of this systematic review is to provide a picture of the worldwide mitigation strategies implemented in occupational environments for minimizing the exposure to formaldehyde and which ones are the most effective for this purpose.The systematic review was performed according to PRISMA statement; the protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42022302207). The search was...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 23, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
High levels of polycyclic aromatic compounds in outdoor and indoor PM10 of an urban residential environment during a winter pollution event in Strasbourg, France
AbstractPolycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) are major airborne pollutants. However, their assessment has mostly been restricted to 16 priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). In this work, 76 PACs including PAHs, oxy-PAHs, nitro-PAHs, azaarenes, and thiaarenes were monitored in an urban residential environment. A short-term campaign was conducted at three dwellings in Strasbourg, France, with low-volume PM10 samplers operated simultaneously outdoors and indoors. Household dust was also sampled in these dwellings. The PACs of interest were extracted by pressurized liquid extraction in toluene and acetonitrile, and...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 23, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Reduction of simulation times by application of a kernel method in a high-resolution Lagrangian particle dispersion model
This article proposes the application of a kernel method as the concentration calculation methodology inside microscale Lagrangian particle dispersion models (LPDMs) in order to reduce the required computational time. In these models, the concentration is normally estimated with the box-counting method, while the use of this alternative method, based on the use of the statistical technique of kernel density estimation, allows for a reduction of numerical particles emitted during the simulation, while guaranteeing a similar accuracy to that of the box-counting method. It therefore enables an optimization of computational ef...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 21, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Analysis and estimation of gaseous air pollutant emissions emitted into the atmosphere during Manavgat and Milas wildfire episodes using remote sensing data and ground measurements
In this study, the concentration levels of CO, NO2, CH2O, SO2, and O3 gases emitted during the two biggest wildfire episodes observed in Manavgat and Milas, T ürkiye in 2021 were analyzed and spatio-temporal gas concentrations were estimated. Using the remote sensing imagery from Sentinel-5P satellite, a daily based time-series data analysis was performed over the Google Earth Engine platform (GEEp) and the gas emission levels (mol/m2) during the wildfires were obtained. The processed time-series data has been associated with the measurements from ground-stations of T ürkiye National Air Quality Monitoring Network, allow...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 14, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Spatiotemporal variation and trend in carbon monoxide concentration over Africa: insights from MOPITT Data
This study investigates the spatial and temporal variation and trend in CO concentrations over Africa from 2000 to 2019 using data from the Measurements of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) satellite instrument. The study classifies Africa into eight subregions based on emission inventories: northern hemisphere (NH), southern hemisphere (SH), arid (A), semi-arid north (SAN), savannah NH (SNH), savannah SH (SSH), semi-arid south (SAS), and tropical rainforest (TRF). It is observed that the northern hemisphere contributes about 54.07% of CO over Africa, while the SH accounts for 45.93%. The research reveals that the annu...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 13, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
The effect of local pollution and transport dust on near surface aerosol properties over a semi-arid station from ground and satellite observations
AbstractMineral dust, originating in arid regions, exerts substantial influence on air quality, health, and climate, ranking it among the most impactful aerosols. Its capacity to travel over great distances can significantly impact local air quality. In our study conducted for the year 2021, we made use of unprecedented, simultaneous in situ measurements to assess the total number, mass concentrations, and size distribution of near-surface aerosols at a semi-arid station. Furthermore, we conducted an in-depth examination of dust episodes, drawing upon evidence from in situ measurements of surface aerosol properties and met...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 10, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Daily dynamics of forest air negative ion concentration in spring and the relationship of influencing factors: results of field monitoring
AbstractNegative air ions (NAIs) are important in improving air quality and developing new materials and clinical medicine. NAI concentrations are higher in urban forests than in other areas, which is good for public health. The Hualou Scenic Area in Qingdao Laoshan National Forest Park was the study site in this paper. Ten plant communities ’ ecological health factors (NAI, temperature, relative humidity, light, wind speed, and particulate matter) were measured concurrently, and plant factors within them were investigated. The Origin, R, and SPSS software were all used to analyze the daily dynamic patterns of NAI concen...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 6, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
How do air quality, economic growth and energy use affect life expectancy in the Republic of Kazakhstan?
This study examines the impact of air pollution, energy use and economic growth on life expectancy. For this purpose, we collected data from 1990 to 2022 from the Republic of Kazakhstan because air pollution contributes to more than 10,000 premature deaths yearly in Kazakhstan. Based on unit root results, the auto-regressive distributed lag (ARDL) model is applied to compile the results for empirical analysis. We found that energy use and air quality have an inverse relationship with life expectancy in the long run. At the same time, economic growth and population have a positive and significant impact on life expectancy. ...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 2, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Application of dynamic spatiotemporal modeling to predict urban traffic –related air pollution changes
This study aimed to create a dynamic spatiotemporal model to predict changes in urban traffic-related air pollution in Tehran using a land use regression (LUR) model. Two datasets were employed to model the spatiotemporal distribution of gaseous traffic-related pollutants —sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and carbon monoxide (CO). The first dataset incorporated remote sensing data, including land surface temperature (LST), the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), apparent thermal inertia (ATI), population density, altitude, land use, road density, road length, and distance to highways. The second d...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 2, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Occurrence of azo-dyes, plasticizers, and PAH-bound microplastics: an emerging source and sink for hazardous compounds in indoor environments?
This study offers valuable insights into the role of MPs as both source and sink for hazardous contaminants within indoor environments. The analytical techniques employed encompass micro-Raman spectroscopy and high-resolution mass spectrometry. The results revealed a strong correlation between the levels of MPs with the size of the residential population. The dominant shape, colour and polymer type of MPs were fibre, white/transparent and polyamide, respectively. The risk of exposure to microplastics through ingestion was 22.5 times higher for infants compared to adults. In settlements where inhabitants utilized firewood a...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 2, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Complex study of air pollution based on tree species in Vienna
AbstractPlants are especially useful as biological indicators to assess air pollution and the effects of urbanisation. The aim of this study was to investigate tree species ’ sensitivity to air pollution using the Air Pollution Tolerance Index (APTI), the dust content (PM10) of leaves, and the heavy metal concentration of leaves. Sampling sites were in a city park (urban area), a location on the edge of the city (suburban area), and a forested location (rural area) along an urbanisation gradient in the city of Vienna in Austria. Leaf samples were collected fromAcer platanoides,Fraxinus excelsior, andQuercus robur tree sp...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 2, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Investigation of the spatiotemporal patterns of air quality over the metropolitan area of Tehran, using TROPOMI and OMI data
In this study, we investigated air quality in the metropolitan area of Tehran utilizing TROPOMI and OMI data based on the Google Earth Engine platform. Long-term analysis indicated slight negative trends in NO2, SO2, and HCHO over the last two decades, which are due to the development of urban transportation systems. Air quality parameters were classified based on spatiotemporal similarities. Urban pollutants include CO1, NO2, and HCHO, which were concentrated over the eastern part of Tehran and decreased radially towards the city border. Among the pollutants, CO1 showed a dependency with altitude. SO2 was controlled by bo...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 1, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
Removal efficiencies of emissions of volatile organic compounds by adsorption systems installed in small-scale auto-repair painting operations
In this study, three auto-repair shops (one with an old and two with new air pollutant adsorption systems) in Seoul were selected to evaluate their removal efficiencies with respect to THC and VOCs during painting and drying operations. Results show that the THC removal efficiencies were −41.3–35.4% and 17.2–59.2% for the old and new adsorption systems, respectively. The removal efficiencies of the top five VOC species such as butyl acetate, toluene, 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene, m-, p-xylene, and ethylbenzene were positive (+) and negative (−) for the new and old adsorption syste ms, respectively. These results provide ...
Source: Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health - November 1, 2023 Category: Environmental Health Source Type: research
