An integrated air pollution modeling system for urban and regional scales: 1. Structure and performance

Abstract

A new three‐dimensional air pollution modeling system is described for urban and regional air quality studies. The system includes four major components: a meteorological model, a tracer transport code, a chemical and aerosol microphysical model, and a radiative transfer code. The meteorological model solves the equations of fluid dynamics and thermodynamics over complex terrain and incorporates physical processes such as turbulent diffusion, water vapor condensation and precipitation, solar and infrared radiative transfer, and ground surface processes. The tracer transport code computes the dispersion of gases and aerosols throughout the atmosphere, including the effects of emission sources, and dry and wet deposition. The chemistry/aerosol model treats coupled gas‐phase photochemistry and aerosol microphysics and chemistry. Aerosol processes include nucleation, coagulation, condensational growth, evaporation, sedimentation, chemical equilibrium and aqueous chemistry. A detailed radiative transfer code is attached to the dynamical and chemical models. Absorption and scattering by gases and aerosols are explicitly treated to define photodissociation rates, heating and cooling profiles, and boundary layer visibilities. The integrated modeling system, which is referred to as the surface meteorology and ozone generation (SMOG) model, is shown to be a powerful tool for studying coupled dynamical, chemical, and microphysical processes on urban and regional scales.