Emission modelling in high spatial and temporal resolution and calculation of pollutant concentrations for comparisons with measured concentrations

Abstract

In order to evaluate computer aided models for anthropogenic emissions within the EVA experiment, detailed emission inventories in high spatial and temporal resolution (1 h) for the Augsburg area (southern Germany) have been calculated for about 50 different substances (carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, total NMVOC, individual hydrocarbons up to C 10). A mesoscale emission model, that is generated to estimate high-resolution emission data for larger areas (∼10,000–1,000,000 km 2), has been used for calculations at ‘default level’, which reflects the state of the art of calculating emission data as input for mesoscale atmospheric models. In a further step, the quality of the emission inventory has been improved by using more detailed data for the investigation area. This was done to determine the impact of the improvements on the emission data and to explore whether the improvements could explain the differences between modelled and measured data in the EVA experiment. To prepare emission data, that can be compared directly to emission rates derived from mass balance and tracer techniques, the emissions were determined for the area corresponding to the flight pattern of the mass balance experiments. For comparison with measured concentration ratios, a Gaussian multi-source model was developed and applied to calculate pollutant concentrations at the measurement sites. Comparisons between results of the two model precision levels and between modelled and measured emission rates and pollutant concentrations indicate sensible future improvements of the mesoscale emission model methodology.