Abstract
Combustion processes, including the use of solid fuels for residential heating, are a widespread custom for many households. Residential heating is a significant source of ambient air pollution, yet it varies greatly by geography, meteorologic conditions, the prevalence of the type of solid fuel and the technologies used. This study evaluates whether residential heating affects the air quality through modelling three given scenarios of solid fuel boiler exchange at selected locations and comparing the results with measured data. The findings of this study suggest that according to the modelled data, the main air pollution contributor is residential heating since Dolni Lhota (daily average of PM10 = 44.13 μg·m−3) and Kravare (daily average of PM10 = 43.98 μg·m−3) are locations with no industry in contrast to heavily industrial Vratimov (daily average of PM10 = 34.38 μg·m−3), which were modelled for the heating season situation. Nevertheless, actual measurements of PM10 during the same period suggest that the average levels of air pollution were significantly higher than the modelled values for Dolni Lhota by 64% and for Kravare by 51%. Thus, it was assumed that PM long-range or/and transboundary transports were involved.
Highlights
The use of solid fuels for residential heating is still a common practice for households despite the extensive availability of electricity and natural gas
The findings of this study suggest that according to the modelled data, the main air pollution contributor is residential heating since Dolni Lhota and Kravare are locations with no industry in contrast to heavily industrial Vratimov, which were modelled for the heating season situation
The terrain information from each location was used for the dispersion model; graphical terrain presentation can be found in Minimum, average and maximum daily concentrations of PM10 for all three model scenarios and measured average concentrations
Summary
The use of solid fuels for residential heating is still a common practice for households despite the extensive availability of electricity and natural gas. Solid fuels for heating comprise mainly wood and coal, as well as forestry and agricultural residues, and even municipal waste [1]. These materials continue to be used for residential cooking and heating by nearly 3 billion people worldwide at least part of the year, mostly during the winter months [2]. Combustion processes, including residential heating with wood and coal, are a significant source of ambient air pollution, yet it varies greatly by geography, the prevalence of the type of solid fuel and the technologies used. 61,000 premature deaths are attributable to ambient air pollution from residential heating with wood and coal in Europe [5]. The PM10 emissions from households and the institutional and commercial building sectors have only decreased in this period by 13% [7]
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