Measuring urban thermal environment from accessibility-based perspective:A case study in a populous city

Understanding the spatial interaction among residents,cooling service,and heat risk area in complex urban areas is conducive to developing targeted management.However,traditional urban thermal environment assessments typically relied on simple linear integration of associated indicators,often neglecting the spatial interaction effect.To explore the spatial interaction among the three elements,this study proposes an accessibility-based urban thermal environment assessment framework.Using Zhengzhou,a rapidly urbanizing city,as an example,remotely sensed images from three periods(2010,2015 and 2020)were applied to extract urban green space(UGS)and hot island area(HIA).An improved two-step floating catchment area(2SFCA)method and bivariate local Moran’s I were employed to explore whether residents’clustering locations are more likely to access cooling service or to be exposed to heat risk.The results demonstrate that the UGS in the city has been expanding,whereas the HIA shrank within the inner city in 2015 and then increased in 2020.Even though the urban thermal environment may have improved in the last decade,the spatial interaction among the residents,cooling service and heat risk area could be exacerbated.Spatial autocorrelation shows an increase in locations that are disadvantageous for resident congregation.Even when sufficient cooling services were provided,residents in these areas could still be exposed to high heat risk.The developed urban thermal environment framework provides a novel insight into the residents’heat risk exposure and cooling service accessibility,and the findings could assist urban planners in targeting the improvement of extra heat exposure risk locations.

Advances in geothermal exploration and production:Introduction

Geothermal resources are a renewable and clean energy source that is not affected by weather,day and night,or seasonal changes.If large-scale development and utilization can be achieved(Gerald,2021),it will have important strategic and practical significance for ensuring energy supply in human society and achieving the“dual carbon goals”(Ma,2023).

深层含水层地下储热技术的发展现状与展望

深层含水层储热是一种利用深度>500m的深层含水层作为储热介质的储热技术,储热对象通常为50~150℃的热水。它通过地下水井从深层含水层中抽取和灌入地下水,实现热能储存和回收。深层含水层储热技术是弥补能源供需时空分布的不平衡,综合利用多种可再生能源,实现节能减排的有效途径,是国内外研究的前沿和热点。文中首先阐述了深层含水层储热系统在世界范围内的历史发展,归纳储热系统的热工性能,在总结前人研究工作的基础上分析影响其热回收效率的关键参数,并对各个参数对热回收效率的敏感性做了综述。在此基础上,本文还讨论了限制深层含水层储热系统发展的技术瓶颈,并针对系统的经济效益和市场潜力做了预测和展望。

Batch methanogenic fermentation experiments of wastewater from a brown coal low-temperature coke plant

Coke plant effluents with high contents of organic compounds are mainly treated by biological aerobic fermentation after physical pre-treatment. In this study, a brown coal condensate wastewater from a low temperature coking process was fermented under methanogenic conditions in discontinuous experiments. By this fermentation, acetate, propionate, and the main polyphenolic compounds （catechol, resorcinol and hydroquinone） were degraded to a level below the detection limit. The COD was reduced by 72% with a residual concentration of 2.1 g/L. This anaerobic fermented wastewater had a residual BOD5 of 0.66 g/L and 2.2 L CH4 were formed per litre of wastewater. An abiotic pre-treatment for this wastewater with air had a negative effect on the COD reduction and decrease of colour on the methanogenic fermentation due to the autoxidation of polyphenolic compounds to humic-like compounds. This study showed that methanogenic fermentations in the treatment sequence of brown coal coking wastewaters could reduce energy consumption for aeration in further treatment processes and had the potential for a better effluent quality due to a less formation of recalcitrant humic-like compounds.

National Forest Inventories capture the multifunctionality of managed forests in Germany

Background:Forests perform various important ecosystem functions that contribute to ecosystem services.In many parts of the world,forest management has shifted from a focus on timber production to multi-purpose forestry,combining timber production with the supply of other forest ecosystem services.However,it is unclear which forest types provide which ecosystem services and to what extent forests primarily managed for timber already supply multiple ecosystem services.Based on a comprehensive dataset collected across 150 forest plots in three regions differing in management intensity and species composition,we develop models to predict the potential supply of 13 ecosystem services.We use those models to assess the level of multifunctionality of managed forests at the national level using national forest inventory data.Results:Looking at the potential supply of ecosystem services,we found trade-offs(e.g.between both bark beetle control or dung decomposition and both productivity or soil carbon stocks)as well as synergies(e.g.for temperature regulation,carbon storage and culturally interesting plants)across the 53 most dominant forest types in Germany.No single forest type provided all ecosystem services equally.Some ecosystem services showed comparable levels across forest types(e.g.decomposition or richness of saprotrophs),while others varied strongly,depending on forest structural attributes(e.g.phosphorous availability or cover of edible plants)or tree species composition(e.g.potential nitrification activity).Variability in potential supply of ecosystem services was only to a lesser extent driven by environmental conditions.However,the geographic variation in ecosystem function supply across Germany was closely linked with the distribution of main tree species.Conclusions:Our results show that forest multifunctionality is limited to subsets of ecosystem services.The importance of tree species composition highlights that a lack of multifunctionality at the stand level can be compensated by managing forests at the landscape level,when stands of complementary forest types are combined.These results imply that multi-purpose forestry should be based on a variety of forest types requiring coordinated planning across larger spatial scales.

Experimental investigation of different brines imbibition influences on co-and counter-current oil flows in carbonate reservoirs

Imbibition of water,as wetting phase in oil-wet fractured carbonate reservoirs,plays a key role in fluid flow between matrix and fracture system.The type of injected seawater and its chemistry would profoundly influence the imbibition process.In this study,the impact of smart water(a brine that its ions have been adjusted to facilitate oil recovery)and low salinity water on co-and counter-current imbibition processes for oil-wet carbonate cores has been experimentally investigated.The results show an increase of about 10% in oil recovery for co-and counter-currents for smart seawater imbibition compared to that of low salinity seawater.In addition,as a result of the influence of co-and counter-current on each other,by co-current removal from one core face,the countercurrent in the other face would be intensified by as much as about 75%.A close examination of different lengths(5,7 and 9 cm)of carbonate cores with the same permeability revealed that by decreasing porous medium length,the amount of counter-current producing oil would be decreased so that in the 5 cm core,counter current oil production will not happen.For similar core lengths by increasing permeability,the share of counter current flow would be decreased approximately 18% since the capillary pressure could not overcome non-wetting phase viscous forces.Considering the role of matrix length along with a modified brine(which is designed according to the matrix mixture)strengthen the relevant mechanisms to have more oil production so that the higher thickness of matrix causes the higher amount of co-current oil producing and consequently more total recovery.

Numerical analysis of thermal impact on hydro-mechanical properties of clay

As is known, high-level radioactive waste （HLW） is commonly heat-emitting. Heat output from HLWwilldissipate through the surrounding rocks and induce complex thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical（THMC） processes. In highly consolidated clayey rocks, thermal effects are particularly significantbecause of their very low permeability and water-saturated state. Thermal impact on the integrity of thegeological barriers is of most importance with regard to the long-term safety of repositories. This studyfocuses on numerical analysis of thermal effects on hydro-mechanical properties of clayey rock using acoupled thermo-mechanical multiphase flow （TH2M） model which is implemented in the finite elementprogramme OpenGeoSys （OGS）. The material properties of the numerical model are characterised by atransversal isotropic elastic model based on Hooke＇s law, a non-isothermal multiphase flow model basedon van Genuchten function and Darcy＇s law, and a transversal isotropic heat transport model based onFourier＇s law. In the numerical approaches, special attention has been paid to the thermal expansion ofthree different phases： gas, fluid and solid, which could induce changes in pore pressure and porosity.Furthermore, the strong swelling and shrinkage behaviours of clayey material are also considered in thepresent model. The model has been applied to simulate a laboratory heating experiment on claystone.The numerical model gives a satisfactory representation of the observed material behaviour in thelaboratory experiment. The comparison of the calculated results with the laboratory findings verifies thatthe simulation with the present numerical model could provide a deeper understanding of the observedeffects. 2014 Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Production and hosting byElsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The carbon fluxes in different successional stages:modelling the dynamics of tropical montane forests in South Ecuador

Background： Tropical forests play an important role in the global carbon（C） cycle.However, tropical montane forests have been studied less than tropical lowland forests, and their role in carbon storage is not well understood.Montane forests are highly endangered due to logging, land-use and climate change.Our objective was to analyse how the carbon balance changes during forest succession.Methods： In this study, we used a method to estimate local carbon balances that combined forest inventory data with process-based forest models.We utilised such a forest model to study the carbon balance of a tropical montane forest in South Ecuador, comparing two topographical slope positions（ravines and lower slopes vs upper slopes and ridges）.Results： The simulation results showed that the forest acts as a carbon sink with a maximum net ecosystem exchange（NEE） of 9.3 Mg C？（ha？yr）-1during its early successional stage（0–100 years）.In the late successional stage, the simulated NEE fluctuated around zero and had a variation of 0.77 Mg C？（ha？yr）–1.The simulated variability of the NEE was within the range of the field data.We discovered several forest attributes（e.g., basal area or the relative amount of pioneer trees） that can serve as predictors for NEE for young forest stands（0–100 years） but not for those in the late successional stage（500–1,000 years）.In case of young forest stands these correlations are high, especially between stand basal area and NEE.Conclusion： In this study, we used an Ecuadorian study site as an example of how to successfully link a forest model with forest inventory data, for estimating stem-diameter distributions, biomass and aboveground net primary productivity.To conclude, this study shows that process-based forest models can be used to investigate the carbon balance of tropical montane forests.With this model it is possible to find hidden relationships between forest attributes and forest carbon fluxes.These relationships promote a better understanding of the role of tropical montane forests in the context of global carbon cycle, which in future will become more relevant to a society under global change.

Investigation of environmental and land use impacts in forested permafrost headwaters of the Selenga-Baikal river system,Mongolia-Effects on discharge,water quality and macroinvertebrate diversity

Headwater streams play a major role for provision of ecosystem services,e.g.drinking water.We investigated a high-altitude headwater catchment of the Kharaa River(including 411st-order rivers)to understand the impact of land cover(especially forest cover),environment and human usage on runoff,chemical water quality and macroinvertebrate fauna in a river basin under discontinuous permafrost conditions in an arid,sparsely populated region of Mongolia.To verify our hypotheses that different landuses and environmental impacts in permafrost headwaters influence water quality,we investigated 105 sampling sites,37 of them at intermittent stream sections without water flow.Discharge was positively impacted by land cover types steppe,grassland and forest and negatively by shrubland,forest burnt by wild fires(indicating a reduction of permafrost)and slope.Water quality was affected by altitude,longitude and latitude,shrub growth and water temperature.Shannon diversity of macroinvertebrates was driven by water temperature,iron content of the water,flow velocity,and subbasin size(adjusted R^(2)=0.54).Sample plots clustered in three groups that differed in water chemistry,macroinvertebrate diversity,species composition and bio-indicators.Our study confirms that steppes and grasslands have a higher contribution to runoff than forests,forest cover has a positive impact on water quality,and diversity of macroinvertebrates is higher in sites with less nutrients and pollutants.The excellent ecological status of the upper reaches of the Kharaa is severely threatened by forest fires and human-induced climate change and urgently needs to be conserved.

Space aquatic chemistry:A roadmap for drinking water treatment in microgravity

Rapid advancement in aerospace technology has successfully enabled long-term life and economic activities in space,particularly in Low Earth Orbit(LEO),extending up to 2000 km from the mean sea level.However,the sustainance of the LEO Economy and its Environmental Control and Life Support System(ECLSS)still relies on a regular cargo supply of essential commodities(e.g.,water,food)from Earth,for which there still is a lack of adequate and sustainable technologies.One key challenge in this context is developing water treatment technologies and standards that can perform effectively under microgravity conditions.Solving this technical challenge will be a milestone in providing a scientific basis and the necessary support mechanisms for establishing permanent bases in outer space and beyond.To identify clues towards solving this challenge,we looked back at relevant scientific research exploring novel technologies and standards for deep space exploration,also considering feedback for enhancing these technologies on land.Synthesizing our findings,we share our outlook for the future of drinking water treatment in microgravity.We also bring up a new concept for space aquatic chemistry,considering the closed environment of engineered systems operating in microgravity.

Enhanced production of thermostable laccases from a native strain of Pycnoporus sanguineus using central composite design

The production of thermostable laccases from a native strain of the white-rot fungus Pycnoporus sanguineus isolated in Mexico was enhanced by testing different media and a combination of inducers including copper sulfate（CuSO4）.The best conditions obtained from screening experiments in shaken flasks using tomato juice,CuSO4,and soybean oil were integrated in an experimental design.Enhanced levels of tomato juice as the medium,CuSO4and soybean oil as inducers（36.8%（v/v）,3 mmol/L,and 1%（v/v）,respectively） were determined for 10 L stirred tank bioreactor runs.This combination resulted in laccase titer of 143000 IU/L（2,2＇-azino-bis（3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6- sulfonic acid）,pH 3.0）,which represents the highest activity so far reported for P.sanguineus in a 10-L fermentor.Other interesting media resulting from the screening included glucose-bactopeptone which increased laccase activity up to 20000 IU/L,whereas the inducers Acid Blue 62 and Reactive Blue 19 enhanced enzyme production in this medium 10 times.Based on a partial characterization,the laccases of this strain are especially promising in terms of thermostability（half-life of 6.1 h at 60 °C） and activity titers.

The relationship between controllability, optimal testing resource allocation, and incubation-latent period mismatch as revealed by COVID-19

The severe shortfall in testing supplies during the initial COVID-19 outbreak and ensuing struggle to manage the pandemic have affirmed the critical importance of optimal supplyconstrained resource allocation strategies for controlling novel disease epidemics.To address the challenge of constrained resource optimization for managing diseases with complications like pre-and asymptomatic transmission,we develop an integro partial differential equation compartmental disease model which incorporates realistic latent,incubation,and infectious period distributions along with limited testing supplies for identifying and quarantining infected individuals.Our model overcomes the limitations of typical ordinary differential equation compartmental models by decoupling symptom status from model compartments to allow a more realistic representation of symptom onset and presymptomatic transmission.To analyze the influence of these realistic features on disease controllability,we find optimal strategies for reducing total infection sizes that allocate limited testing resources between‘clinical’testing,which targets symptomatic individuals,and‘non-clinical’testing,which targets non-symptomatic individuals.We apply our model not only to the original,delta,and omicron COVID-19 variants,but also to generically parameterized disease systems with varying mismatches between latent and incubation period distributions,which permit varying degrees of presymptomatic transmission or symptom onset before infectiousness.We find that factors that decrease controllability generally call for reduced levels of non-clinical testing in optimal strategies,while the relationship between incubation-latent mismatch,controllability,and optimal strategies is complicated.In particular,though greater degrees of presymptomatic transmission reduce disease controllability,they may increase or decrease the role of nonclinical testing in optimal strategies depending on other disease factors like transmissibility and latent period length.Importantly,our model allows a spectrum of diseases to be compared within a consistent framework such that lessons learned from COVID-19 can be transferred to resource constrained scenarios in future emerging epidemics and analyzed for optimality.

The impact of salps(Salpa thompsoni)on the Antarctic krill population(Euphausia superba):an individual-based modelling study

Background Krill(Euphausia superba)and salps(Salpa thompsoni)are key macrozooplankton grazers in the Southern Ocean ecosystem.However,due to differing habitat requirements,both species previously exhibited little spatial overlap.With ongoing climate change-induced seawater temperature increase and regional sea ice loss,salps can now extend their spatial distribution into historically krill-dominated areas and increase rapidly due to asexual reproduction when environmental conditions are favorable.Understanding the potential effects on krill is crucial,since krill is a species of exceptional trophic significance in the Southern Ocean food web.Negative impacts on krill could trigger cascading effects on its predators and prey.To address this question,we combined two individual-based models on salps and krill,which describe the whole life cycle of salp individuals and the dynamic energy budget of individual krill.The resulting new model PEKRIS(PErformance of KRIll vs.Salps)simulates a krill population for 100 years under varying chlorophyll-a concentrations in the presence or absence of salps.Results All of the investigated krill population properties(abundance,mean length,and yearly egg production)were significantly impacted by the presence of salps.On the other hand,salp density was not impacted if krill were present.The medians of krill population properties deviated during variable maximum chlorophyll-a density per year when salps were introduced by−99.9%(−234 individuals per 1000 m3)for krill density,−100%(−22,062 eggs per 1000 m3)for krill eggs and−0.9%(−0.3 mm)for mean length of krill.Conclusions If both species compete for the same food resource in a closed space,salps seem to inhibit krill populations.Further simulation studies should investigate whether this effect prevails if different phytoplankton sizes and consumption preferences of krill are implemented.Furthermore,direct predation of the two species or consumption of krill fecal pellets by salps could change the impact size of the food competition.

Changes in the supply and demand potentials of China's glacier water resources in the 21st century:Spatiotemporal mismatches and combined effects

China's glacier water resources(GWRs)are not only indispensable suppliers of fresh water for humans living in large domestic areas but also affect the water supply to downstream neighbouring countries.Therefore,it is crucial to systematically evaluate the spatiotemporal(mis-)matches between the supply and demand potentials of China's GWRs and the combined supply and demand effects in the 21st century to enable regional sustainable development.To facilitate such research,in this study,we first regionalized the importance of China's GWRs in terms of the supply potential and downstream human dependence to reveal the spatial(mis-)matches between supply and demand potentials.Then,changes in the service potential of glacier meltwater and in population dynamics,as well as their temporal(mis-)matches and associated opportunities and risks,were further assessed at the river basin scale.The results showed that GWR plays an important role in 4 of 16 macroscale glacier-fed basins(i.e.,Tarim,Junggar,Ili,and Zangxi)and 11 of 37 subbasins within the China region due to higher supply potential and demand potential in those basins.The importance of China's GWRs increases dramatically when taking the demand potential of downstream countries into account,especially in the Ganges and Indus river basins.The peaks in meltwater runoff from the most glacierized basins of the eastern Tianshan Mountains,eastern Qilian Mountains,and southeastern Tibetan Plateau of China occur slightly earlier than the projected peak population(around 2030)under the mid-range Shared Socioeconomic Pathway(SSP245),leading to a compound risk in terms of decreasing meltwater supply and increasing human dependence at the end of the 2020s.However,the peak meltwater is expected to occur later than the peak population in the Tarim,Qiangtang Plateau,and Qaidam basins.The opportunities offered by the increase in meltwater can relieve the water resource pressure for those populations under water-stressed conditions.Greater attention should also be paid to water shortage risks in the transboundary river basins,especially in the Indus and Ganges basins,because the peak meltwater within China is generally expected to occur sooner than the projected peak population of downstream countries.This study provides an effective planning and decision-making basis for the full utilization of China's GWRs and adaptation when glacier runoff declines.

Species-specific effects of genetic diversity and species diversity of experimental communities on early tree performance

Aims Changing biodiversity can affect ecosystem functioning.However,the role of genetic diversity within species,relative to the one of species diversity,has hardly been addressed.Methods To address the effects of both genetic diversity and species diversity during the important stage of early tree life,we used eight seed families(SF)taken from each of 12 evergreen and deciduous tree species of subtropical forest to perform a factorial experiment.We established 264 communities of 16 trees each.Each community had a species diversity of either one or four species and a genetic diversity of either one,two or four SF per species.We measured plant survival,growth rate,final biomass and herbivory 20 months after sowing.Important Findings Species differed from each other in biomass,growth rate,herbivory and survival(P<0.001).Deciduous species tended to have much higher biomass(P<0.1)and experienced higher herbivory(P<0.05)than evergreen species.Species diversity affected the performance of different species differently(species diversity by species interaction,P<0.001 for all variables but survival).Biomass differed between SF and increasing genetic diversity from one to two,and from two to four,SF per species increased biomass for some species and decreased it for others(P<0.001).Our study showed pronounced species-specific responses of early tree performance to species diversity and less pronounced responses to genetic diversity.These species-specific responses suggest feedbacks of species diversity and genetic diversity on future species composition.

Effects of topography on structuring species assemblages in a subtropical forest

Aims Topography has long been recognized as an important factor in shaping species distributions.Many studies revealed that species may show species-habitat associations.However,few studies inves-tigate how species assemblages are associated with local habitats,and it still remains unclear how the community-habitat associa-tions vary with species abundance class and life stage.In this study,we analyzed the community-habitat associations in a subtropical montane forest.Methods The fully mapped 25-ha(500×500 m)forest plot is located in Badagongshan Nature Reserve in Hunan Province,Central China.It was divided into 625(20×20 m)quadrats.Habitat types were classified by multivariate regression tree analyses that cluster areas with similar species composition according to the topographic characteristics.Indicator species analysis was used to identify the most important species for structuring species assemblages.We also compared the community-habitat associations for two levels of species abundances(i.e.abundant and rare)and three different life stages(i.e.saplings,juveniles and adults),while accounting for sample size effects.Important Findings The Badagongshan plot was divided into five distinct habitat types,which explained 34.7%of the variance in tree species composi-tion.Even with sample size taken into account,community-habi-tat associations for rare species were much weaker than those for abundant species.Also when accounting for sample size,very small differences were found in the variance explained by topography for the three life stages.Indicator species of habitat types were mainly abundant species,and nearly all adult stage indicator species were also indicators in juvenile and sapling stages.Our study manifested that topographical habitat filtering was important in shaping over-all local species compositions.However,habitat filtering was not important in shaping rare species’distributions in this forest.The community-habitat association patterns in this forest were mainly shaped by abundant species.In addition,during the transitions from saplings to juveniles,and from juveniles to adults,the relative importance of habitat filtering was very weak.

The influence of slope collapse on water exchange between a pit lake and a heterogeneous aquifer

Due to the increase in open pit mining,pit lakes have become common surface water features,posing a potential risk to subsurface aquifer.In this study,a pit lake–groundwater interaction model is built based on the general program MODFLOW with the LAK3 package.For the first time,the effects of lake-slope collapse and aquifer heterogeneity on pit lake–groundwater interactions are analyzed by dividing the lake into six water exchange zones based on the aquifer lithology and groundwater level.Our investigation and simulations reveal a total water exchange from groundwater to the lake of 349000 m3/a without collapse of the pit lake slope,while the total net water exchange under slope collapse conditions is 248000 m3/a(i.e.,a reduction of 1.40-fold).The monthly net water exchange per unit width from groundwater to the lake reaches the largest in April,shifting to negative values in zone IV from June to August and in zone V in June and July.Moreover,the monthly net water exchange per unit width decreases from north to south,and the direction and magnitude of water exchange are found to depend on the hydraulic gradients between the lake and groundwater and the hydraulic conductivity of the slope collapse.

Geographic information science in the era of geospatial big data: A cyberspace perspective

The advent of information and communication technology and the Internet of Things have led our society toward a digital era.The proliferation of personal computers,smartphones,intelligent autonomous sensors,and pervasive network interactions with individuals have gradually shifted human activities from offline to online and from in person to virtual.This transformation has brought a series of challenges in a variety of fields,such as the dilemma of placelessness,some aspects of timelessness(no time relevance),and the changing relevance of distance in the field of geographic information science(GIScience).In the last two decades,“cyber thinking”in GIScience has received significant attention from different perspectives.For instance,human activities in“cyberspace”need to be reconsidered when coupled with the geographic space to observe the first law of geography.

Individual stages of bacterial dichloromethane degradation mapped by carbon and chlorine stable isotope analysis

The fractionation of carbon and chlorine stable isotopes of dichloromethane(CH_2Cl_2,DCM)upon dechlorination by cells of the aerobic methylotroph Methylobacterium extorquens DM4 and by purified DCM dehalogenases of the glutathione S-transferase family was analyzed.Isotope effects for individual steps of the multi-stage DCM degradation process,including transfer across the cell wall from the aqueous medium to the cell cytoplasm,dehalogenase binding,and catalytic reaction,were considered.The observed carbon and chlorine isotope fractionation accompanying DCM consumption by cell supensions and enzymes was mainly determined by the breaking of C\Cl bonds,and not by inflow of DCM into cells.Chlorine isotope effects of DCM dehalogenation were initially masked in high density cultures,presumably due to inverse isotope effects of non-specific DCM oxidation under conditions of oxygen excess.Glutathione cofactor supply remarkably affected the correlation of variations of DCM carbon and chlorine stable isotopes(Δδ^(13)C/Δδ^(37)Cl),increasing corresponding ratio from 7.2–8.6 to 9.6–10.5 under conditions of glutathione deficiency.This suggests that enzymatic reaction of DCM with glutathione thiolate may involve stepwise breaking and making of bonds with the carbon atom of DCM,unlike the uncatalyzed reaction,which is a one-stage process,as shown by quantum-chemical modeling.

Global Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases demonstration project:aerosol pollution and its seasonal peculiarities in primary schools of Vilnius

Background:The growing public health concern caused by non-communicable diseases in urban surroundings cannot be solved by health care alone;therefore a multidisciplinary approach is mandatory.This study aimed to evaluate the airborne aerosol pollution level in primary schools as possible factor influencing origin and course of the diseases in children.Methods:Seasonal aerosol particle number concentration(PNC)and mass concentration(PMC)were studied in the randomly selected eleven primary schools in the Lithuanian capital,Vilnius,as model of a middle-size Eastern European city.Total PNC in the size range from 0.01 to>1.0μm in diameter was measured using a condensation particle counter.Using an optical particle sizer,PNC was measured and PMC estimated for particles from 0.3 to 10.0μm.A descriptive statistics was used to estimate the aerosol pollution levels.Results:During all seasons,local cafeterias in the absence of ventilation were the main sources of the elevated levels of indoor PMC and PNC(up to 97,500 particles/cm3).The other sources of airborne particulates were the children’s activity during the lesson breaks with PMC up to 586μg/m3.Soft furniture,carpets in the classrooms and corridors were responsible for PMC up to 200μg/m3.Outdoor aerosol pollution(up to 18,170 particles/cm3)was higher for schools in city center.Elevated air pollution in classrooms also resulted from intermittent sources,such as construction work during classes(200-1000μg/m3)and petrol-powered lawn trimmers(up to 66,400 particles/cm3).Conclusion:The results of our survey show that even in a relatively low polluted region of Eastern Europe there are big differences in aerosol pollution within middle-sized city.Additional efforts are needed to improve air quality in schools:more frequent wet cleaning,monitoring the operation of ventilation systems,a ban on construction works during school year,on a use of sandblasting mechanisms in the neighborhood of schools.