Search results for "Air Quality Index"
showing 10 items of 124 documents
PAHs associated with the leaves of Quercus ilex L.: Extraction, GC–MS analysis, distribution and sourcesAssessment of air quality in the Palermo (Ita…
2007
Abstract In this study, the leaves of Quercus ilex L. were selected as possible bioaccumulators of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Quercus is an evergreen plant that occurs widely in both urban and rural areas. Several sites (urban roadside, urban, urban park, suburban and rural) in and around Palermo city were investigated. The purpose of this research was to optimize analytical method for quercus leaves, investigate the degree of contamination in the urban area of Palermo by comparing PAH concentration in leaves of quercus from the several sites, establish distribution patterns and relate them to possible sources of PAHs. To this aim, the 16 recommended as priority pollutants by …
Temperature Inversion Breakup with Impacts on Air Quality in Urban Valleys Influenced by Topographic Shading
2015
AbstractUrban valleys can experience serious air pollution problems as a combined result of their limited ventilation and the high emission of pollutants from the urban areas. Idealized simulations were analyzed to elucidate the breakup of an inversion layer in urban valleys subject to a strong low-level temperature inversion and topographic effects on surface heating such as topographic shading, as well as the associated air pollution transport mechanisms. The results indicate that the presence and evolution in time of the inversion layer and its interplay with an urban heat island within the valley strongly influence the venting of pollutants out of urban valleys. Three mechanisms of air …
Outdoor NO2 and benzene exposure in the INMA (Environment and Childhood) Asturias cohort (Spain)
2011
Air pollution exposure during pregnancy has been linked to a wide range of negative health effects. NO2, a traffic pollution marker, and benzene, an industrial pollution indicator, stand out among the types of air pollution linked to these effects. The aim of this work is to show the methodology used to assign exposure levels for both pollutants and preliminary reports in the INMA (Environment and Childhood) Asturias cohort in Spain. This cohort consists of 494 pregnant women and their children, who have been recruited and followed since 2004. Air pollution levels were measured at 67 points by means of passive samplers. The mean NO2 measured value was 21.2 mu g m(-3) (range 3.5 mu g m(-3) t…
Asthma and air pollution
2014
During the last decades research all over the world has highlighted the deleterious effects of pollution on respiratory health of adults and children. Nevertheless, air pollution still represents a significant threat to health. Children are more sensitive than adults to pollutants for several factors: increased respiration relative to body size; physiologic immaturity of respiratory and immunologic systems; low metabolic capacity; longer life expectancy. Several studies demonstrated an association between exposure to outdoor pollutants and respiratory diseases in childhood. Outdoor pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate (PM), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), ozone…
Air Quality during Covid-19 Lockdown
2021
Air pollution exposure is one of the greatest risks to health worldwide. It is estimated to be responsible for about 4.2 million deaths around the world every year owing to many serious diseases such as heart disease, stroke, acute and chronic respiratory diseases, and lung cancer. The WHO guideline limits are exceeded in several areas around the world, and it is estimated that about 90% of the world’s population is exposed to high air pollution levels, especially in low- and middle-income countries. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced governments to implement severe mobility restriction measures to limit the spread of the virus. This represented a unique opportunity to study the impact of mob…
THE IMPACT OF TRAFFIC RELATED POLLUTION ON AIR QUALITY IN SIBIU REGION
2015
Urban areas represent the main zones of anthropogenic emissions and, at the same time, includes the largest number of population exposed to air pollution. Data related to traffic hot spots locations in Sibiu urban areas are presented and discussed in this paper. It is important to assess the impact of changing climate conditions and concentration of pollutants, these aspects are of special interest because of high and increasing population of urban regions exposed to consequences of climate change and air pollution. Paper tackling the problem of traffic related pollution and especially PM10 fraction as a novel research. No other research were previously done in Sibiu region emphasising part…
Environmental Conditions, Air Pollutants, and Airways
2019
Air pollution is a major problem worldwide, which could be even more serious for athletes who train in urban environments. Exercise increases minute ventilation and exposure to pollutants, but the literature on the effects of air pollution in athletes is relatively scarce, with the exception of chlorine exposure in athletes of aquatic sports and air pollution secondary to ice resurfacing in athletes performing in ice arenas. Although air pollution may exert detrimental effects on athletic performance, little has been published on this topic. The largest body of information regards the impact of air pollution during urban active transport, i.e., walking and cycling in cities, due to the pote…
Dispersion models and air quality data for population exposure assessment to air pollution
2014
Evaluating the extent of exposure to chemicals in absence of continuous measurements of their concentration in air and direct measures of personal exposure is crucial for epidemiological studies. Dispersion models can be a useful tool for reproducing spatio-temporal distribution of contaminants emitted by a specific source. However, they cannot easily be applied to short-term epidemiological studies because they require precise information on daily emission scenarios for a long time, which are generally not available. The aim of this study was to better assess the exposure in the industrial area of Brindisi, which suffers from various critical epidemiological situations, by integrating air …
The Seasonality Impact of the BTEX Pollution on the Atmosphere of Arad City, Romania
2021
Benzene, toluene, and total BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene) concentrations registered for one year (2016) have been determined every month for one high-density traffic area. The assessment was performed in Arad City, Romania, to evaluate these pollutants and their influence on the inhabitants’ health. The contaminants were sampled using a static sampling method and analyzed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. Benzene was the most dominant among the BTEX compounds—the average concentrations ranged from 18.00 ± 1.32 µg m−3 in December to 2.47 ± 0.74 µg m−3 in August. The average toluene concentration over the year was 4.36 ± 2.42 µg m−3 (with a maximum of 9…
Air Pollution Research Based on Spider Web and Parallel Continuous Particulate Monitoring—A Comparison Study Coupled with Identification of Sources
2021
Air pollution is monitored mainly in urban or industrial areas, even if it is known that in rural ones, low emission can significantly worsen air quality. Hence, cheap and easily accessible methods of monitoring are needed. Recently, spider webs biomonitoring is getting popular, however, there is no information about its comparison with active methods. In this study, PTEs accumulated on spider webs were compared with results from continuous particulate monitor (CPM). Generally, higher potentially toxic elements concentrations were noted in spider web, with exception in the case of Zn. Zn may be present rather in smaller fractions, hence it needs more time for accumulation on spider web whil…