Transport Patterns and Potential Sources of Atmospheric Pollution during the ⅩⅩⅣ Olympic Winter Games Period

The attainment of suitable ambient air quality standards is a matter of great concern for successfully hosting the ⅩⅩⅣ Olympic Winter Games(OWG). Transport patterns and potential sources of pollutants in Zhangjiakou(ZJK) were investigated using pollutant monitoring datasets and a dispersion model. The PM_(2.5) concentration during February in ZJK has increased slightly(28%) from 2018 to 2021, mostly owing to the shift of main potential source regions of west-central Inner Mongolia and Mongolian areas(2015–18) to the North China Plain and northern Shanxi Province(NCPS) after 2018.Using CO as an indicator, the relative contributions of the different regions to the receptor site(ZJK) were evaluated based on the source-receptor-relationship method(SRR) and an emission inventory. We found that the relative contribution of pollutants from NCPS increased from 33% to 68% during 2019–21. Central Inner Mongolia(CIM) also has an important impact on ZJK under unfavorable weather conditions. This study demonstrated that the effect of pollution control measures in the NCPS and CIM should be strengthened to ensure that the air quality meets the standard during the ⅩⅩⅣ OWG.

燃烧源氨排放对灰霾期间北京大气铵的重要贡献

Aerosol ammonium(NH_(4)^(+)),mainly produced from the reactions of ammonia(NH_(3))with acids in the atmosphere,has significant impacts on air pollution,radiative forcing,and human health.Understanding the source and formation mechanism of NH_(4)^(+)can provide scientific insights into air quality improvements.However,the sources of NH_(3)in urban areas are not well understood,and few studies focus on NH_(3)/NH_(4)^(+)at different heights within the atmospheric boundary layer,which hinders a comprehensive understanding of aerosol NH_(4)^(+).In this study,we perform both field observation and modeling studies(the Community Multiscale Air Quality,CMAQ)to investigate regional NH_(3)emission sources and vertically resolved NH_(4)^(+)formation mechanisms during the winter in Beijing.Both stable nitrogen isotope analyses and CMAQ model suggest that combustion-related NH_(3)emissions,including fossil fuel sources,NH_(3)slip,and biomass burning,are important sources of aerosol NH_(4)^(+)with more than 60%contribution occurring on heavily polluted days.In contrast,volatilization-related NH_(3)sources(livestock breeding,N-fertilizer application,and human waste)are dominant on clean days.Combustion-related NH_(3)is mostly local from Beijing,and biomass burning is likely an important NH_(3)source(~15%–20%)that was previously overlooked.More effective control strategies such as the two-product(e.g.,reducing both SO_(2)and NH_(3))control policy should be considered to improve air quality.

Modeling study of source contributions and emergency control effects during a severe haze episode over the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area

In February 2014, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei(BTH) area experienced a weeklong episode of heavy haze pollution. Cities such as Beijing(BJ) and Shijiazhuang(SJZ) issued heavy pollution alerts for the first time and took emergency control measures. This study employed the Nested Air Quality Prediction Modeling System(NAQPMS) to simulate and analyze the three-dimensional structure of the source contributions of PM2.5 in the BTH area during this pollution episode and quantitatively assessed the effects of the emergency control measures. The results showed that during the polluted period(February 19–26), surface PM2.5 mainly originated from local sources(48%–72%). In the entire BTH area, southern Hebei(SHB) represented the largest internal contribution(33%), while the main external contributions came from Shandong(SD)(10%) and Henan(HN)(4%). Vertically, the local contribution was constrained below the near-ground layer, and rapidly decreased with altitude. The regional transport path from SHB and Shanxi(SX) to BJ appeared at 0.5–1.5 and 1.5–2.5 km, with contributions of 32%–42% and 13%–27%, respectively. The non-local source regions for the BTH area were SD below 1 km and mainly SX and HN above 1 km. Compared to the non-polluted period(February 27–28), the contribution from regional transport increased during the polluted period, indicating the key role of regional transport in the pollution formation. The emergency control measures had a relatively large effect on NOx and SO2 concentrations, but a limited effect on PM2.5. The stronger regional transport during the polluted period may have weakened the effects of the local emergency control measures. These results indicated that a coordinated emission control should be implemented not only over the BTH area but also over its surrounding provinces(e.g. SD, HN).

Refractory black carbon aerosols in rainwater in the summer of 2019 in Beijing:Mass concentration,size distribution and wet scavenging ratio

Black carbon(BC)aerosols in the atmosphere play a significant role in climate systems due to their strong ability to absorb solar radiation.The lifetime of BC depends on atmospheric transport,aging and consequently on wet scavenging processes(in-cloud and below-cloud scavenging).In this study,sequential rainwater samples in eight rainfall events collected in 2 mm interval were measured by a tandem system including a single particle soot photometer(SP2)and a nebulizer.The results showed that the volume-weighted average(VWA)mass concentrations of refractory black carbon(rBC)in each rainfall event varied,ranging from 10.8 to 78.9μg/L.The highest rBC concentrations in the rainwater samples typically occurred in the first fraction from individual rainfall events.The geometric mean median mass-equivalent diameter(MMD)decreased under precipitation,indicating that rBC with larger sizes was relatively aged and preferentially removed by wet scavenging.A positive correlation(R2=0.73)between the VWA mass concentrations of rBC in rainwater and that in ambient air suggested the important contribution of scavenging process.Additionally,the contributions of in-cloud and below-cloud scavenging were distinguished and accounted for 74%and 26%to wet scavenging,respectively.The scavenging ratio of rBC particles was estimated to be 0.06 on average.This study provides helpful information for better understanding the mechanism of rBC wet scavenging and reducing the uncertainty of numerical simulations of the climate effects of rBC.

Sources, evolution and impacts of EC and OC in snow on sea ice： a measurement study in Barrow, Alaska

Based on the field measurements in Barrow, Alaska within the period of April-May 2015, we investigate the sources and variations of elemental carbon(EC) and organic carbon(OC) in the surface layer of snowpack on sea ice, and estimate their effects on the sea ice albedo. Results show that the snow OC in Barrow are from natural sources(e.g. terrestrial higher plants and micro-organisms) mainly, as well as biomass burning(e.g. forest fires and straw combustion) as an important part. Both EC and OC can accumulate at the snow surface with snow melt. The variations in EC and OC and liquid water content in the snow layer are well consistent during the snow-melting period. A higher rate of snow melt implied a more efficient enrichment of EC and OC. In the last phase of snow melt, the concentration increased to a maximum of 16.2 ng/g for EC and 128 ng/g for OC, which is ~10 times larger than those before snow melt onset. Except for the dominant influence of melt amplification mechanism, the variation in concentrations of EC and OC could be disturbed by the air temperature fluctuation and snowfall. Our study indicates that the lightabsorbing impurities contributed 1.6%-5.1% to the reduction in sea ice albedo with melt during the measurement period. The significant period oflight-absorbing impurities influencing on sea ice albedo begins with the rapid melting of overlying snow and ends before the melt ponds formed widely, which lasted for about 10 days in Barrow, 2015.

Chemical formation and source apportionment of PM_(2.5) at an urban site at the southern foot of the Taihang mountains

The region along the Taihang Mountains in the North China Plain(NCP) is characterized by serious fine particle pollution. To clarify the formation mechanism and controlling factors, an observational study was conducted to investigate the physical and chemical properties of the fine particulate matter in Jiaozuo city, China. Mass concentrations of the water-soluble ions(WSIs) in PM_(2.5) and gaseous pollutant precursors were measured on an hourly basis from December 1, 2017, to February 27, 2018. The positive matrix factorization(PMF) method and the FLEXible PARTicle(FLEXPART) model were employed to identify the sources of PM_(2.5). The results showed that the average mass concentration of PM_(2.5) was 111 μg/m^(3) during the observation period. Among the major WSIs, sulfate, nitrate, and ammonium(SNA) constituted 62% of the total PM_(2.5) mass, and NO_(3)^(-) ranked the highest with an average contribution of 24.6%. NH_(4)^(+) was abundant in most cases in Jiaozuo. According to chemical balance analysis, SO_(2)-4, NO_(3)^(-), and Cl^(-) might be present in the form of(NH_4)_(2)SO_4, NH_4NO_3, NH_4Cl, and KCl. The liquid-phase oxidation of SO_(2) and NO_(2) was severe during the haze period. The relative humidity and pH were the key factors influencing SO_(4)^(2-) formation. We found that NO_(3)^(-) mainly stemmed from homogeneous gas-phase reactions in the daytime and originated from the hydrolysis of N_(2)O_5 in the nighttime, which was inconsistent with previous studies. The PMF model identified five sources of PM_(2.5) : secondary origin(37.8%), vehicular emissions(34.7%), biomass burning(11.5%), coal combustion(9.4%), and crustal dust(6.6%).