Characteristics of particulate matter (PM) concentrations influenced by piston wind and train door opening in the Shanghai subway system

Abstract

More than 9million passengers take Shanghai’s subway system every work day. The system’s air quality has caused widespread concern because of the potential harm to passengers’ health. We measured the particulate matter (PM) concentrations at three kinds of typical underground platform (side-type, island-type, and stacked-type platforms) and inside the trains in Shanghai’s metro during 7days of measurements in April and July 2015. Our results demonstrated that the patterns of air quality variation and PM concentrations were similar at the side-type and island-type platforms. We also found that the PM concentrations were higher on the platforms than inside the train and that the PM concentrations in the subway system were positively correlated with those in the ambient air. Piston wind generated by vehicle motion pushes air from the tunnel to the platform, so platform PM concentrations increase when trains approach the platform. However, the piston wind effect varies greatly between locations on the platform. In general, the effect of the piston wind is weaker at the middle of the platform than at both ends. PM concentrations inside the train increase after the doors open, during which time dirty platform air floods into the compartments. PM1.0 and PM2.5 were significantly correlated both inside the train and on the platforms. PM1.0 accounted for 71.9% of PM2.5 inside the train, which is higher than the corresponding platform values. Based on these results, we propose some practical suggestions to minimize air pollution damage to passengers and staff from the subway system.