Title: An approach for determining urban concentration increments

Authors: Nicolas Moussiopoulos; Ioannis Douros; George Tsegas; Eleftherios Chourdakis; Sandra Torras Ortiz

Addresses: Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering, Aristotle University, University Campus, P.O. Box 483, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece ' Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering, Aristotle University, University Campus, P.O. Box 483, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece ' Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering, Aristotle University, University Campus, P.O. Box 483, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece ' Laboratory of Heat Transfer and Environmental Engineering, Aristotle University, University Campus, P.O. Box 483, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece ' Institute of Energy Economics and the Rational Use of Energy (IER), University of Stuttgart, Heßbrühlstr.49a, 70565 Stuttgart, Germany

Abstract: A simple approach for accurately estimating an urban concentration increment on top of the regional background for urban areas in Europe is presented. The method operates by establishing a functional relationship between the concentration increment and the local meteorological situation, the city characteristics, the urban emissions and the background concentrations. In the current study, the above method was applied for PM10 and NO2. Pollutant concentrations needed for the multiple regression process can be derived both from measurements and high resolution urban scale model results. The results demonstrate the capability of this simple approach to reproduce the urban increment with satisfactory accuracy, thus providing a tool for fast but still reliable quantitative assessments of urban air quality that can subsequently be used in calculations of exposure and health impact assessment. Moreover, scenario calculations for the urban increments can be based on scenario emissions and respective modelled regional background concentrations.

Keywords: urban air quality; air pollution; atmospheric dispersion modelling; urban increments; functional relationships; MEGAPOLI; PM10; particulate matter; NOx; nitrogen oxides; pollutant concentrations.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2012.051208

International Journal of Environment and Pollution, 2012 Vol.50 No.1/2/3/4, pp.376 - 385

Published online: 19 Nov 2014 *

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