Pollution Control Action Plan Research Articles

Aerosols characteristics, sources, and drive factors analysis in typical megacities, NW China

Cities in arid and semi-arid regions often confront harsher natural environments and severer industrial pollution. So these are frequently subjected to heavy air pollution, which has critical consequences for the health and production activities and well-being of local citizens. To curb the aggravation of air pollution, the Chinese government conducted an air pollution control action plan with unprecedented strength in September 2013. In this study, based on the fine-resolution aerosol optical depth (AOD) data, combined meteorological and other auxiliary data, utilizing information entropy, backward trajectory, source analysis, and multi-layer perceptron methods, we comprehensively analyzed the spatiotemporal characteristics and variations of AOD in typical arid and semi-arid areas megacities (Lanzhou and Urumqi) from 2010 to 2019, and further explore the potential pollution sources and nature and anthropic influences on AOD. The main results indicate that Lanzhou AOD remains higher than Urumqi in almost all different time windows, especially in the spring. Specifically, the AOD shows a single-peaked distributed trend on the monthly scale, but the peak occurred one month later in Lanzhou than in Urumqi. In the seasons, Lanzhou and Urumqi all show a trend that spring and winter AOD are higher than summer and fall. Lanzhou and Urumqi overall show a tortuous decreasing and then rebounded trend between 2010 and 2019, but the AOD variation in the Urumqi is more dramatic than in Lanzhou. The high AOD mainly concentrates in low altitude areas and there is a downward tendency of AOD in high-AOD areas, but an upward trend in low-AOD areas. The AOD intensity of change is higher in Lanzhou than in Urumqi, but Lanzhou has more concentration. The seasonal differences in backward trajectories are stronger in Lanzhou than in Urumqi, generally, Lanzhou's potential trajectory is mainly distributed in the Hexi Corridor, while Urumqi is along the northern slope of the Tianshan Mountains urban cluster distribution. The potential source area of AOD has a significant seasonal variation, and the closer to the object, the greater the contribution. Generally, Lanzhou pollution is more sensitive to the atmosphere condition and has a wider source area than Urumqi. The AOD was influenced by a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors, but natural variables seem to be more dominant. The impact of natural factors in Urumqi and Lanzhou is statistically obtained up to 75.04% and 52.01% respectively.

Enhancement of Photovoltaic Power Potential in China from 2010 to 2020: The Contribution of Air Pollution Control Policies

China is expected to have a total installed photovoltaic capacity of 1300 GW in 2050, accounting for 39% of the national electricity consumption. However, air pollutants consisting of gases and particulates have attenuation effects on the solar radiation reaching the photovoltaic panels. This work purports to assess the influence of air pollutants on the photovoltaic power potential. We calculated the hourly point-of-array irradiance (POAI) in China for 2010–2020 with a spatial resolution of 0.1° × 0.1° using the PV_LIB model and assessed the effect of air pollutants on POAI. The results indicated that the annual average POAI in China for 2010–2020 ranged from 118 to 286 Wm−2. The Air Pollution Control Action Plan (APPCAP) has played a certain role in photovoltaic power potential, and POAI has increased in areas where surface concentrations of air pollutants have declined. Especially in North China, the surface concentrations of CO, NO2, PM10, PM2.5, and SO2 decreased throughout the APPCAP period with −0.446, −4.985, −35.610, −30.700, and −26.251 μgm−3, respectively, corresponding to an increase in POAI of up to 4.917 Wm−2. The surface concentrations of CO, NO2, PM10, PM2.5, and SO2 were negatively correlated with POAI, with correlation coefficients of −0.764, −0.854, −0.204, −0.110, and −0.664, respectively. Surface concentrations of air pollutants (CO, NO2, PM10, PM2.5, and SO2) and clear-sky POAI in 2018 showed a High-Low clustering in Northeast China and North China. This study demonstrates the role of China’s air pollution control policy in enhancing photovoltaic power potential.

The effect of mandatory environmental regulation on green development efficiency: evidence from China.

The existing literature finds that mandatory environmental regulation (MER) can significantly reduce environmental pollution. However, much less is known about how the implementation of MER affects green development efficiency (GDE). Based on the Air Pollution Control Action Plan which was enforced in 2013 in China’s most developed regions as an exogenous shock, we find that first, MER has a significant negative effect on the improvement of GDE by reducing regional scale efficiency. Second, MER mainly reduces the GDE of cities with stronger regulation intensities and with larger economic volumes. Third, MER also has a negative impact on regional green total factor productivity by changing technical progress. We suggest that when implementing MER, governments should enhance regional and global cooperation, promote green technology, and use comprehensive policy tools to stimulate firms’ green innovation.

Increasing but Variable Trend of Surface Ozone in the Yangtze River Delta Region of China

Surface ozone (O3) increased by ∼20% in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region of China during 2014–2020, but the aggravating trend is highly variable on interannual time and city-level space scales. Here, we employed multiple air quality observations and numerical simulation to describe the increasing but variable trend of O3 and to reveal the main driving factors behind it. In 2014–2017, the governmental air pollution control action plan was mostly against PM2.5 (mainly to control the emissions of SO2, NOx, and primary PM2.5) and effectively reduced the PM2.5 concentration by 18%–45%. However, O3 pollution worsened in the same period with an increasing rate of 4.9 μg m−3 yr−1, especially in the Anhui province, where the growth rate even reached 14.7 μg m−3 yr−1. After 2018, owing to the coordinated prevention and control of both PM2.5 and O3, volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions in the YRD region has also been controlled with a great concern, and the O3 aggravating trend in the same period has been obviously alleviated (1.1 μg m−3 yr−1). We further combined the precursor concentration and the corresponding O3 formation regime to explain the observed trend of O3 in 2014–2020. The leading O3 formation regime in 2014–2017 is diagnosed as VOC-limited (21%) or mix-limited (58%), with the help of a simulated indicator HCHO/NOy. Under such condition, the decreasing NO2 (2.8% yr−1) and increasing VOCs (3.6% yr−1) in 2014–2017 led to a rapid increment of O3. With the continuous reduction in NOx emission and further in ambient NOx/VOCs, the O3 production regime along the Yangtze River has been shifting from VOC-limited to mix-limited, and after 2018, the mix-limited regime has become the dominant O3 formation regime for 55% of the YRD cities. Consequently, the decreases of both NOx (3.3% yr−1) and VOCs (7.7% yr−1) in 2018–2020 obviously slowed down the aggravating trend of O3. Our study argues that with the implementation of coordinated regional reduction of NOx and VOCs, an effective O3 control is emerging in the YRD region.

Using Costs and Health Benefits to Estimate the Priority of Air Pollution Control Action Plan: A Case Study in Taiwan

A comparative analysis was conducted between the costs and health benefits of the Air Pollution Control Action Plan (APCAP), which can be implemented in any country to improve air quality and human health. In this study, air quality modeling was used to simulate several scenarios and implement the Kriging method to describe the PM2.5 reduction concentration instantly. Then, health benefits were estimated using the environmental benefit mapping and analysis program (BenMAP) with results from the air quality modeling and Kriging method. To estimate the priority of APCAP, 14 pollution control measures that cover point, mobile, and area sources of air pollution in Taiwan were analyzed. The results indicate that the health benefits of the Taiwan APCAP (TAPCAP) are generally greater than the technical costs. Thus, the implementation of this strategy may result in net benefits. In addition, the benefit-to-control cost ratio for health for the 14 pollution control measures was calculated. The results provide evidence to prioritize the implementation of air quality policies with a higher benefit-cost ratio.

Impacts of emissions and meteorological changes on China’s ozone pollution in the warm seasons of 2013 and 2017

We have quantified the impacts of anthropogenic emissions reductions caused by the Air Pollution Control Action Plan and changes in meteorological fields between 2013 and 2017 on the warm-season O3 concentration in China using a regional 3D chemical transport model. We found that the impact on daily maximum eight-hour (MDA8) O3 concentration by the meteorological variation that mostly increased O3 was greater than that from emission reduction, which decreased O3. Specifically, the control measures implemented since 2013 in China have reduced SO2, NOx, PM2.5, and VOC emissions by 33%, 25%, 30%, and 4% in 2017, while NH3 emissions have increased by 7%. The changes in anthropogenic emissions lowered MDA8 O3 by 0.4–3.7 ppb (0.8%–7.6%, varying by region and month), although MDA8 O3 was increased slightly in some urban areas (i.e. North China) at the beginning/end of warm seasons. Relative to 2013, the average 2 m temperature in 2017 shows increments in North, North-east, East, and South China (0.34°C–0.83°C) and decreases in Central China (0.24°C). The average solar radiation shows increments in North, North-east, and South China (7.0–9.7 w/m2) and decreases in Central, South-west, and North-west China (4.7–10.3 w/m2). The meteorological differences significantly change MDA8 O3 by −3.5–8.5 ppb (−8.2%–18.8%) with large temporal variations. The average MDA8 O3 was slightly increased in North, North-east, East, and South China. The response surface model suggests that the O3 formation regime transfers from NOx-saturated in April to NOx-limited in July on average in China.

An economic impact evaluation of environmental policy

With the rapid development of the modern economy, the importance of improving energy efficiency and reducing environmental pollution is increasing. Developing an ecological economy is an inevitable course to achieve sustained economic growth. In order to ensure the smooth development of the green economy, the government has introduced a series of environmental protection policies. Meanwhile, a large number of environmental protection and green industries have emerged. However, the economic impact of environmental policies on environmental protection and green industries is difficult to predict. Environmental policy in national level promulgated more frequently, but these policies specifically for environmental protection industry green industry and environmental policy is not much. So the analysis of the process focused on Water Pollution Control Action Plan and public service in-depth promotion of government and social capital cooperation work notice. Results show that the Water Pollution Control Action Plan has a binding effect on the yield of green industries and public service in-depth promotion of government. In contrast, public service in-depth promotion of government and social capital cooperation work notice increases the income of the environmental protection industry, and it has a negative constraint on the green industry.

Partitioning characteristic of chlorine ion in gas and solid phases in process of desulfurization wastewater evaporation: model development and calculation.

Since the promulgation of "Water Pollution Control Action Plan " in China, zero liquid discharge of desulfurization wastewater has become a new trend of power plant water pollution control. Aiming at the application of desulfurization wastewater evaporation technology using high-temperature flue gas, simulation and experimental research on quantifying and predicting gas-solid partitioning of chlorine ion under different operation conditions are carried out in this paper. The gas-liquid equilibrium theory is applied to the complex mixed salt system; based on state equation, the semi-empirical model of gas-solid phase partitioning coefficient of chlorine ion is calculated, with high degree of fitting range from 180 to 380°C. The essential effects of pH, Cl- concentration, and total dissolved solids (TDS) on the gas-solid phase partitioning coefficient of chlorine ion are investigated. The study provides key data for the application of evaporation technology using high-temperature flue gas, obtaining the quantification and prediction of chlorine ion volatilization during desulfurization wastewater evaporation.

Experimental and mechanism research on volatilization characteristics of HCl in desulfurization wastewater evaporation process using high temperature flue gas

Due to the promulgation of “water pollution control action plan” in China, zero liquid discharge of desulfurization wastewater has become a new trend for water pollution control in power plants. The HCl volatilization in desulfurization wastewater evaporation process is the key problem that may influence the application of evaporation technology, so experiment was carried out in self-made experimental system. The effects of temperature, pH, Cl− concentration, total dissolved solids and main metal ions on HCl volatilization were explored. Results have shown that HCl volatilization increases respectively from 5.42% to 20.43% and 2.22% to 9.18% with the increasing temperature from 180°C to 380°C in two kinds of actual desulfurization wastewater evaporation process. When pH<7, Cl− concentration is the main influencing factor on HCl volatilization; the higher Cl− concentration is, the higher HCl volatilization will be observed. While pH>7, pH becomes the dominant factor, increasing pH will inhibit HCl volatilization; Mechanism of HCl volatilization was studied simultaneously by XRD and TGA. Gaseous HCl mainly comes from the combination of free H+ and Cl−, hydrolysis of Ca2+ and Mg2+ in liquid phase and hydrolysis of hydrate in high temperature solid phase; Ways to inhibit HCl volatilization in process were put forward according to the experimental results. The use of Ca(OH)2 to adjust the pH of desulfurization wastewater to 9.0–10.0 can inhibit HCl volatilization economically and efficiently. This study provides the key data for the application of flue gas evaporation technology under high temperature. The research results have important theoretical and practical values for the engineering practice of this technology.

How to reach haze control targets by air pollutants emission reduction in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region of China?

Currently, Haze is one of the greatest environmental problems with serious impacts on human health in China, especially in capital region (Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region). To alleviate this problem, the Chinese government introduced a National Air Pollution Control Action Plan (NAPCAP) with air pollutants reduction targets by 2017. However, there is doubt whether these targets can be achieved once the plan is implemented. In this work, the effectiveness of NAPCAP is analyzed by developing models of the statistical relationship between PM2.5 concentrations and air pollutant emissions (SO2, NOx, smoke and dust), while taking into account wind and neighboring transfer impacts. The model can also identify ways of calculating the intended emission levels in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei area. The results indicate that haze concentration control targets will not be attained by following the NAPCAP, and that the amount of progress needed to meet the targets is unrealistic. A more appropriate approach to reducing air emissions is proposed, which addresses joint regional efforts.

An optimization model design for energy systems planning and management under considering air pollution control in Tangshan City, China

In this study, an interval-parameter fuzzy programming mixed integer programming method (IFMIP) is designed for supporting the planning of energy systems management (ESM) and air pollution mitigation control under multiple uncertainties. The IFMIP-ESM model is based on an integration of interval-parameter programming (IPP), fuzzy programming (FP), and mixed-integer programming (MIP), which can reflect multiple uncertainties presented as both interval values and fuzzy distributions numbers. Moreover, it can successfully identify dynamics of capacity expansion schemes, reflect dual dynamics in terms of interval membership function, and analyze various emission-mitigation scenarios through incorporating energy and environmental policies. The designed model is applied to a case of energy systems management in Tangshan City, China, and the results indicate that reasonable solutions obtained from the model would be helpful for decision makers to effectively (a) adjust the allocation patterns of energy resources and transform the patterns of energy consumption and economic development, (b) facilitate the implement of air pollution control action plan, and (c) analysis dynamic interactions among system cost, energy-supply security, and environmental requirement.

Source Apportionment of Particulate Air Pollution and Percentage Contribution of PM10 and PM2.5 Using Chemical Mass Balance (CMB) Method

The study is to analyze the concentration of particulate pollutants level and its monitoring, there fore suggesting controlling measures of particulate pollution at Virudhunagar in Tamilnadu. This work summarized the results of a series of comprehensive studies on particulate matter carried out in study area from 2010 to 2011. The air quality has been categorized into four broad categories based on an Exceedence Factor (EF) of measured concentration of pollutants. It could be seen from the categorization, that all the study sites were violating the standards, although, with varying magnitude. The concentration of particulate matter PM10 and PM2.5 was statistically analyzed and higher concentration of pollutants observed during the months of April and May. Overall high concentration of particulates observed during summer at site 2. There is no considerable variation of concentration of particulates was observed at site 3 during all the three seasons. In the available receptor models, chemical mass balance(CMB) method was utilized for this study. This modeling involves quantitative assessment of source contributions to the measured ambient samples based on the degree to which source profiles can be combined to produce ambient concentrations. Particulate samples collected from all the three locations were subjected to chemical speciation. The composition of the data was analyzed and divided into three categories to correlate with the sources. Sources identified as major contributors to particulate pollution were fugitive dust on roads and construction sites, vehicular exhaust, biomass burning at residential and road side trash. The monitoring and analysis results were utilized to strengthen the need for a faster and effective pollution control action plan for the study area. Keyword: PM10, CMB, Virudhunagar, Particulate matter, Exceedence factor, Critical pollution

Receptor model-based source apportionment of particulate pollution in Hyderabad, India

Air quality in Hyderabad, India, often exceeds the national ambient air quality standards, especially for particulate matter (PM), which, in 2010, averaged 82.2 ± 24.6, 96.2 ± 12.1, and 64.3 ± 21.2 μg/m(3) of PM10, at commercial, industrial, and residential monitoring stations, respectively, exceeding the national ambient standard of 60 μg/m(3). In 2005, following an ordinance passed by the Supreme Court of India, a source apportionment study was conducted to quantify source contributions to PM pollution in Hyderabad, using the chemical mass balance (version 8.2) receptor model for 180 ambient samples collected at three stations for PM10 and PM2.5 size fractions for three seasons. The receptor modeling results indicated that the PM10 pollution is dominated by the direct vehicular exhaust and road dust (more than 60%). PM2.5 with higher propensity to enter the human respiratory tracks, has mixed sources of vehicle exhaust, industrial coal combustion, garbage burning, and secondary PM. In order to improve the air quality in the city, these findings demonstrate the need to control emissions from all known sources and particularly focus on the low-hanging fruits like road dust and waste burning, while the technological and institutional advancements in the transport and industrial sectors are bound to enhance efficiencies. Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board utilized these results to prepare an air pollution control action plan for the city.