Spatiotemporal profiles of ultrafine particles differ from other traffic-related air pollutants : lessons from long-term measurements at fixed sites and mobile monitoring

Peer reviewe

Measurement of Black Carbon and Particle Number Emission Factors from Individual Heavy-Duty Trucks

Emission factors for black carbon (BC) and particle number (PN) were measured from 226 individual heavy-duty (HD) diesel-fueled trucks driving through a 1 km-long California highway tunnel in August 2006. Emission factors were based on concurrent increases in BC, PN, and CO{sub 2}B concentrations (measured at 1 Hz) that corresponded to the passage of individual HD trucks. The distributions of BC and PN emission factors from individual HD trucks are skewed, meaning that a large fraction of pollution comes from a small fraction of the in-use vehicle fleet. The highest-emitting 10% of trucks were responsible for {approx} 40% of total BC and PN emissions from all HD trucks. BC emissions were log-normally distributed with a mean emission factor of 1.7 g kg {sup -1} and maximum values of {approx} 10 g kg{sup -1}. Corresponding values for PN emission factors were 4.7 x 10{sup 15} and 4 x 10{sup 16} kg{sup -1}. There was minimal overlap among high-emitters of these two pollutants: only 1 of the 226 HD trucks measured was found to be among the highest 10% for both BC and PN. Monte Carlo resampling of the distribution of BC emission factors observed in this study revealed that uncertainties (1{sigma}) in extrapolating from a random sample of n HD trucks to a population mean emission factor ranged from {+-} 43% for n = 10 to {+-} 8% for n = 300, illustrating the importance of sufficiently large vehicle sample sizes in emissions studies. Studies with low sample sizes are also more easily biased due to misrepresentation of high-emitters. As vehicles become cleaner on average in future years, skewness of the emissions distributions will increase, and thus sample sizes needed to extrapolate reliably from a subset of vehicles to the entire in-use vehicle fleet are expected to become more of a challenge

Secondary organic aerosol from ozone-initiated reactions with terpene-rich household products

We analyzed secondary organic aerosol (SOA) data from a series of small-chamber experiments in which terpene-rich vapors from household products were combined with ozone under conditions analogous to product use indoors. Reagents were introduced into a continuously ventilated 198 L chamber at steady rates. Consistently, at the time of ozone introduction, nucleation occurred exhibiting behavior similar to atmospheric events. The initial nucleation burst and growth was followed by a period in which approximately stable particle levels were established reflecting a balance between new particle formation, condensational growth, and removal by ventilation. Airborne particles were measured with a scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS, 10 to 400 nm) in every experiment and with an optical particle counter (OPC, 0.1 to 2.0 ?m) in a subset. Parameters for a three-mode lognormal fit to the size distribution at steady state were determined for each experiment. Increasing the supply ozone level increased the steady-state mass concentration and yield of SOA from each product tested. Decreasing the air-exchange rate increased the yield. The steady-state fine-particle mass concentration (PM1.1) ranged from 10 to> 300 mu g m-3 and yields ranged from 5percent to 37percent. Steady-state nucleation rates and SOA mass formation rates were on the order of 10 cm-3 s-1 and 10 mu g m-3 min-1, respectively

Factors affecting the indoor concentrations of carbonaceous aerosols of outdoor origin

A field study was conducted in an unoccupied single story residence in Clovis, California to provide data to address issues important to assess the indoor exposure to particles of outdoor origin. Measurements of black and organic carbonaceous aerosols were performed using a variety of methods, resulting in both near real-time measurements as well as integrated filter based measurements. Comparisons of the different measurement methods show that it is crucial to account for gas phase adsorption artifacts when measuring organic carbon (OC). Measured concentrations affected by the emissions of organic compounds sorbed to indoor surfaces imply a higher degree of infiltration of outdoor organic carbon aerosols into the indoor environment for our unoccupied house. Analysis of the indoor and outdoor data for black carbon (BC) aerosols show that, on average, the indoor concentration of black carbon aerosols behaves in a similar manner to sulfate aerosols. In contrast, organic carbon aerosols are subject to chemical transformations indoors that, for our unoccupied home, resulted in lower indoor OC concentrations than would be expected by physical loss mechanisms alone. These results show that gas to particle partitioning of organic compounds, as well as gas to surface interactions within the residence, are an important process governing the indoor concentration to OC aerosols of outdoor origin

Can combining economizers with improved filtration save energy and protect equipment in data centers?

Economizer use in data centers is an energy efficiency strategy that could significantly limit electricity demand in this rapidly growing economic sector. Widespread economizer implementation, however, has been hindered by potential equipment reliability concerns associated with exposing information technology equipment to particulate matter of outdoor origin. This study explores the feasibility of using economizers in data centers to save energy while controlling particle concentrations with high-quality air filtration. Physical and chemical properties of indoor and outdoor particles were analyzed at an operating northern California data center equipped with an economizer under varying levels of air filtration efficiency. Results show that when improved filtration is used in combination with an economizer, the indoor/outdoor concentration ratios for most measured particle types were similar to levels when using conventional filtration without economizers. An energy analysis of the data center reveals that, even during the summer months, chiller savings from economizer use greatly outweigh any increase in fan power associated with improved filtration. These findings indicate that economizer use combined with improved filtration could reduce data center energy demand while providing a level of protection from particles of outdoor origin similar to that observed with conventional design

Air quality impacts of liquefied natural gas in the South Coast Air Basin of California

The effects of liquefied natural gas (LNG) on pollutant emission inventories and air quality in the South Coast Air Basin (SoCAB) of California are evaluated using recent appliance emissions measurements by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), and use of a state-of-the-art air quality model. Pollutant emissions can be impacted by LNG operation because of differences in composition and physical properties including the Wobbe index, a measure of energy delivery rate. Various LNG distribution scenarios are evaluated to determine the potential impacts of LNG. Projected penetration of LNG in the SoCalGas pipeline network in SoCAB is expected to be limited, which could cause increases in overall (area-wide) emissions of nitrogen oxides that are smaller than 0.05%. Based on the photochemical state of the South Coast Air Basin of California, any increase in NOx is expected to cause an increase in the highest local ozone concentrations, which is observed in model results. However, the magnitude of NOx emissions increases due to LNG use is determined to be within the uncertainty range of natural gas combustion sources and would not be discernible with the existing monitoring network