Vicinity Of Airports Research Articles

Participative pilot study at the vicinity of airports for the construction of a noise point counter integrating instantaneous annoyance at overflight

Current regulations on transport noise are based on energetic acoustic indicators that do not adequately reflect the intensity and repetitive nature of noise peaks, particularly for aircraft overflights or rail traffic. The public debate on these issues therefore often centres on the questioning of these indicators, which are deemed to be inadequate to reflect the annoyance caused to local populations, particularly in a context of increasing traffic. Bruitparif suggests exploring a noise events counter, the Noise Point Counter (NPC), based on existing NAX indicators but freeing itself from the threshold effect, which is a drawback to their use. The idea is to count the number of noise events, weighting each event according to the level of instantaneous annoyance it is likely to generate for local residents. To make progress on the feasibility of developing such an indicator and to confirm its relevance, Bruitparif is proposing to carry out a pilot study on three selected overflown areas in the Île-de-France region, involving around thirty local residents on each occasion. The paper will present the principle behind the creation of this new indicator as well as the pilot study protocol.

Prediction of Cumulonimbus Clouds in Airport Vicinity using NOAA Satellite Imagery and Random Forest Models

Prediction of Cumulonimbus Clouds in Airport Vicinity using NOAA Satellite Imagery and Random Forest Models

Impacts of Fuel Stage Ratio on the Morphological and Nanostructural Characteristics of Soot Emissions from a Twin Annular Premixing Swirler Combustor.

Soot particles emitted from aircraft engines constitute a major anthropogenic source of pollution in the vicinity of airports and at cruising altitudes. This emission poses a significant threat to human health and may alter the global climate. Understanding the characteristics of soot particles, particularly those generated from Twin Annular Premixing Swirler (TAPS) combustors, a mainstream combustor in civil aviation engines, is crucial for aviation environmental protection. In this study, a comprehensive characterization of soot particles emitted from TAPS combustors was conducted using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and Raman spectroscopy. The morphology and nanostructure of soot particles were examined across three distinct fuel stage ratios (FSR), at 10%, 15%, and 20%. The SEM analysis of soot particle morphology revealed that coated particles constitute over 90% of the total particle sample, with coating content increasing proportionally to the fuel stage ratio. The results obtained from HRTEM indicated that average primary particle sizes increase with the fuel stage ratio. The results of HRTEM and Raman spectroscopy suggest that the nanostructure of soot particles becomes more ordered and graphitized with an increasing fuel stage ratio, resulting in lower oxidation activity. Specifically, soot fringe length increased with the fuel stage ratio, while soot fringe tortuosity and separation distance decreased. In addition, there is a prevalent occurrence of defects in the graphitic lattice structure of soot particles, suggesting a high degree of elemental carbon disorder.

Transaction costs of ineffective legal intervention restricting land ownership in the vicinity of airports: the example of the Polish compensation scheme in the context of environmental regulations

The goal of the paper is to assess the social implications of an ineffective legal intervention, which consists of introducing ownership restrictions concerning residential real estate located in the vicinity of airports. The paper evaluates Polish law in the context of the legislator's environmental aims and compares current regulations in Poland with solutions adopted in English law and American jurisdictions. The social and economic impact of ineffective legal intervention is calculated for the KTW airport case study with the use of information about the structure and value of filed and awarded claims for damages. With the use of this data, in the empirical part of the paper, we evaluate the factual transaction costs of public intervention for that airport, as well as ones which would occur if, instead of the Polish model, the American and the English models of compensation were applied. This allows us to explain the socio-economic consequences of adopting a given solution as well as to assess whether it fulfils desirable objectives. It also provides an opportunity to assess the models in the context of devising legally and economically justified compensation for landowners near airports affected by aircraft noise. The paper narrows the gap in the legal and economic knowledge related to the types and implications of ownership restrictions introduced in the vicinity of airports.

Assessing the influence of street canyon shape on aircraft noise: Results from measurements in courtyards near Amsterdam Schiphol Airport

Aircraft noise is a major stressor for communities in the vicinity of airports. Aircraft noise prediction models omit the built environment, based on an implicit assumption that the impact of buildings on the propagation of aircraft noise is neglectable. In this article a study is presented in which aircraft noise levels were measured near walls facing towards and away from aircraft flyovers in an urban test environment near Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. The test environment comprises three adjacent courtyards, each enclosed by stacked shipping containers. To examine the influence of street geometry on aircraft noise, specifically for slanted roofs and building insets, the shipping containers were stacked in a different pattern around each courtyard. In total, sound levels for 2383 aircraft flyovers were analysed across five months at ten microphone positions within the courtyards, for both arrivals and departures. Depending on the geometry of the courtyards, mean differences (LA,max) between facades with- and without a line of sight towards the aircraft ranged between −1,3dBA and 5,0dBA for arrivals, and 8,7dBA and 13,6dBA for departures. SEL values ranged between between −0,8dBA and 4,3dBA for arrivals, and 8,1dBA and 11,6dBA for departures. The results suggest that slanted roofs perpendicular to the flight direction deflect incident sound, substantially reducing the sounds levels inside courtyards. Contrarily, building insets at building sides facing away from the flight paths did not reduce sound levels underneath the overhangs significantly. The findings stress the importance of architectural and urban design to mitigate aircraft noise.

Aircraft noise contours—From everything for everyone to nothing for anyone

Aircraft noise exposure contours were originally intended as a tool to facilitate compatible land use in the vicinity of airports. The simple concept was for authorities to use historic data and reasonable predictions for near future demands to create a map that identified areas of high aircraft noise impacts. Municipalities and planners would refer to this map to determine appropriate zoning around the airport, restricting noise sensitive development in high noise exposure areas. With time, different demands and applications of the noise contours emerged. Some stakeholders demanded longer term forecasts to allow for planning farther into the future. Some co-opted contours as a PR tool to suggest reduced impacts on communities. Some began using noise contours as a tool to protect against encroachment. Others began to look to noise contours as a representation of daily acoustic conditions in areas surrounding the airport. In Canada, a lack of oversight and guidance for the selection of inputs parameters for noise models, make it such that noise contours have become a product illustrating whatever their creator intends, lacking objectivity and scientific rigour. This research demonstrates how noise contours can be designed to achieve desired results by modulating different input parameters.

An examination of sUAS operations in proximity to a major U.S. Airport

The use of small, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) has proliferated in the past several years. While operators are supposed to avoid operations in the immediate vicinity of airports, there are sometimes violations. In extreme cases, these violations can result in the complete grounding of flights at major airports around the world. These disruptions can lead to thousands of flights canceled and hundreds of thousands of passengers displaced. A compounding problem is the lack of empirical data to understand the amount of, and types of, sUAS operations around major airports. The purpose of this study was to assess the characteristics of sUAS operations near the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) by objectively analyzing data collected over a 36-month timeframe. The findings provide empirical data on the types of sUAS operations around DFW, yearly variance in operations, levels of UAS facility map compliance, types and times of sUAS flown, and sUAS launching points. The data indicates a growing trend in operations between 2018 and 2020, with a possible plateau in 2021 and beyond. sUAS operations in the airport vicinity are high, with approximately 70 % operating in the 400-foot grid levels or at points farther away from critical airport operations. Flights appear to follow seasonality and daily operation patterns, and growth seems to be in smaller vehicles with weights less than 250 g. In addition to the results, the authors discuss practical implications for National Airspace System (NAS) safety and the implications of integrating new operations into communities, such as drone deliveries and Advanced Air Mobility operations.

มลพิษทางเสียงที่เกิดจากท่าอากาศยาน

Noise pollution caused by airports is an important long-term problem as the noise level of most airport activities is higher than 85dB (A), which the World Health Organization (WHO) has assigned that a noise level greater than 85dB (A) is considered a dangerous noise affecting quality of life, due to non-standard noise control during operation or inefficient land management. Currently, the number of flights and passenger travel is likely to increase. It may cause more noise pollution and have a wider impact if not properly addressed. Therefore, this academic article aims to study the problems of noise pollution caused by airports including risk activities, future trend, impacts and solutions. It appeared that land use planning in the establishment of the airport and forecasting the upcoming air traffic in the future by taking into account the extent of the impact of noise in the airport vicinity area Including the addition of modern aircraft innovation and seriously implementation of the (International Civil Aviation Organization: ICAO) airport operating standards can help to effectively reduce the impact of noise pollution caused by airports.

Modeling and Analysis of Noise Emission Using Data from Flight Simulators

The main goal of this article is to examine the impact of various factors, including the aircraft take-off weight and configuration, on the noise and gaseous emissions. The analysis was based on trajectory data obtained from the X-Plane 11 simulator and a MATLAB noise engine created in accordance with ECAC.CEAC (European Civil Aviation Conference) Doc 29 recommendations. It allowed us to present various noise metrics in the form of noise maps and conduct a general analysis of how certain factors, e.g., flap settings, impact the noise and gaseous emissions. The study indicates that, from the “global” perspective (i.e., the entire airport vicinity), the NADP1 procedure shows better noise reduction, while the NADP2 procedure exhibits lower CO2 emissions. Conversely, from the perspective of individual observers (i.e., the local perspective), it may (but not necessarily) be the case that the NADP2 procedure allows for achieving both minimal noise and CO2 emissions compared to the NADP1 procedure. For example, reducing take-off thrust may reduce the SEL > 85 [dB] area in NADP2 by twice as much as in NADP1, but at the cost of almost four times less CO2 emission reductions. The study may be further developed to find an algorithm for designating individual noise-abatement procedure parameters that will account for various factors in order to minimize the aforementioned emissions.

Effect of Operating Conditions on the Emission Characteristics Of an Annular Combustor

Pollutant emissions from combustion processes have become of great public concern due to their impact on health and the environment. Recent growth in civil aviation and stationary gas turbines power plants is worsening the situation both at airport vicinity and in altitude. This has called for rapid changes both in the regulations and controlling gas turbine emissions and in the technologies used to meet these regulations. All these developments have been accompanied by continuous and increasing pressure on the combustion engineers to reduce pollutant emissions from all types of gas turbines while operating at very high levels of pressure and temperature. In this paper an effort is made to characterize an annular combustion chamber from emission point and effect of various operating conditions has been analyzed. The emission characteristics of combustor are very satisfied and are inline to that of contemporary combustors of same class. This study can lead to combustor modifications for bringing down the emission levels to meet the international regulations.

Preliminary design of next generation Mach 1.6 supersonic business jets to investigate landing & take-off (LTO) noise and emissions – SENECA.

With the approach of next generation supersonic transport entry into service, new research activities were initiated to support updates on ICAO regulations and certification processes for supersonic transport vehicles. Within this context, the EU Horizon 2020 SENECA project has been launched to investigate the levels of noise and gaseous emissions in the vicinity of airports as well as the global climate impact of next generation supersonic civil aircraft. This paper introduces some of the preliminary outcomes of this investigation. It presents the preliminary design and performance analysis of a Mach 1.6 business jet, following an integrated aircraft-engine design approach. The preliminary design was performed accounting for the limitations posed by future environmental restrictions on respective subsonic vehicles. The market space and mission route definition exercise assumed only “over-sea” supersonic operations, while for “over-land”, only subsonic operations where allowed. Parametric studies on engine integrated design demonstrated modest core temperatures while cruising and the significant impact of engine installation on performance. At this first design iteration, assuming current state of the art technology, the Mach 1.6 business jet showed good potential to satisfy the predicted mission requirements while respecting the environmental constraints in terms of Landing & Take-Off (LTO) noise and emissions.

Validation of three inherently different aircraft noise calculation programs

Aircraft noise affects large areas around airports. Noise calculation programs therefore need to account for air operations with high accuracy. In this contribution, we simulated several thousand single flights with the three aircraft noise calculation programs FLULA2, sonAIR and AEDT, and compared the results among each other and with corresponding noise measurements to evaluate their accuracy. While FLULA2 and sonAIR calculations are adjusted to local conditions, AEDT was run with default settings (NPD data and standard procedural profiles) to assess its performance when using unadjusted input data. We found that results of all three programs on average agree well with measurements and with each other. sonAIR is more accurate when using flight configuration data, but also in greater distances to the airports. Exemplarily adaptations of AEDT input data to local conditions showed that such adaptations clearly improve its calculation results. It was shown that, despite their inherently different modelling approaches, (a) all three programs are on average equally capable of reproducing the sound exposure in the vicinity of airports, (b) adaptions of input data to local conditions substantially improve results and (c) sonAIR is able to reproduce single flights with higher accuracy when provided with flight configuration data.

Study on the ground attenuation of engine run-up and APU noise for developing the airport noise model in Japan

The correction for ground effect around airports is modeled based on the results of numerical analysis in order to make it possible to estimate the propagation of noise caused by ground operations in airports such as engine run-ups and APU to the vicinity of airports. The excess attenuation due to ground effects on sound caused by engine run-ups and APU is calculated using a PE method for typical jet aircraft and propeller aircraft, respectively. On the assumption that the ground around an airport consists of asphalt-paved surface and grass-covered surface in a certain ratio, the excess attenuation for the mixed impedance ground is calculated with the Fresnel-zone method using the results of PE calculation. The composition ratio of ground surface is assumed based on the composition ratio of asphalt-paved surface and grass-covered surface along the propagation path from the engine run-up spot to the airport site boundary of six major airports in Japan. In this paper, we introduce the excess attenuation calculated with the PE method and the correction model for ground effects on noise of engine run-ups and APU is discussed to implement it in the airport noise prediction model used in Japan.

The Role of Physician Advocacy in Supporting Policy Change That Reduces Leaded Aviation Gasoline Emissions.

Leaded aviation gasoline (AvGas) accounts for 70%, or 935,082 pounds, of total lead emissions in the United States and has been repeatedly linked to elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) in those living in the vicinity of airports using AvGas. The well-established link between lead exposure and adverse health outcomes provided a platform ripe for environmental health advocates and pediatric health experts to assist a local environmental health organization in addressing lead waste from a local airport, Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport (MYF). We detail the steps we took, as a physician clean-air advocacy group. We provide a qualitative analysis of our efforts in addressing leaded air pollution through targeted and creative environmental health advocacy through three main avenues: government, public awareness, and academia. Our actions were taken to ensure the City of San Diego installed an unleaded fuel tank at MYF to reduce leaded aviation gasoline usage and subsequently lead air pollution in the surrounding area. Ultimately, the identified objective of an unleaded fuel tank was added to the San Diego City budget and scheduled for construction. We hope our actions can serve as a framework to provide concrete steps for clinicians and other advocates to enact change in their communities.

Survey of aircraft noise abatement strategies in the US

Aircraft noise is generally regarded as the most annoying source of environmental noise and is the most common source of complaints raised by residents living in the vicinity of airports. Many different types of abatement measures can be utilized by airports to reduce the noise impact, but the manner of their implementation can vary between airports. To assess how noise control strategies are implemented across the United States (US), a national survey of noise abatement strategies was conducted. The paper provides a summary of this survey and reports the noise control approaches at 42 different airports across the US. The survey considered general aspects of noise control, as well as specific questions related to noise abatement procedures, noise limits and curfews. Participants were also asked their opinion on the impact of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Balanced Approach, which is the ICAO recommended framework to address aircraft noise. Although just a snapshot of activities across the US is presented, results indicate that a wide array of noise abatement procedures is being implemented. Results also suggest that the ICAO Balanced Approach has yet to be fully embraced in the US, with a large proportion of respondents reporting that they are not familiar with this approach.

A Comprehensive Study on the Effects of Noise Abatement Departure Procedures on Noise Contours Around Tan Son Nhat International Airport

In recent years, accompanied by economic growth, air transportation in Vietnam has rapidly risen with the introduction of many new airlines. This situation has led to an increase in aircraft movement frequency flying in and out of the airports and raised concerns about the effects of increased noise exposure levels on public health and the natural environment in the vicinity of the airports. Vietnam authority has also issued several documents to regulate the establishment of the noise contour maps to evaluate the current noise exposure levels around airports in Vietnam and recognized the noise problem in aviation as a significant issue. One of four measures to reduce the noise around airports introduced in the Balanced Approach to Noise Management of the International Civil Aviation Organization is noise abatement operational procedures. This research is one of the first attempts to provide a comprehensive study on predicting the noise levels and establishing noise contour maps around Tan Son Nhat International airport with the assumption that aircraft take-off following the noise abatement departure procedures 1 and 2 using MATLAB software. The computed noise contours for both procedures show that the day-evening-night equivalent noise levels range from 45 dB(A) to 60 dB(A) around the airport, with the difference in noise levels between the two procedures primarily occurring at the end of the runway due to the difference in stepped departures. These results provide a reference for the authorities to study further in applying suitable noise reduction plans in the vicinity of airports.

The geography of logistics facilities relative to airports: Taxonomy of literature and research agenda

Background: The nexus between airports and the spatial distribution of economic activities is a topical research area. This interest is against the backdrop of the growing volumes and flow of goods, which are facilitated by the processes of logistics. It is typically assumed that logistics facilities have to be located in the vicinity of airports. This assumption is, however, not always correct. Objective: The objectives of the study are two-fold, namely to establish the typology of literature on the locational patterns of logistics facilities relative to airports, and to identify gaps that require more attention towards analysing and appropriately planning for the location of airfreight-related facilities. Method: To identify relevant studies, the article is based on snowballing method, which was supplemented with the search on the Internet databases of Academic Search Premier and Google Scholar, using ‘logistics and airports’ as keyword sieve. Following the perusal of titles and abstracts, 58 studies were reviewed. Results: In establishing the typology of literature, a number of overlapping streams were identified, namely international locational patterns of logistics facilities, airfreight catchment of airports, concentration of logistics facilities in the vicinity of airports, and metropolitan areas and regions as logistics hubs. Conclusion: A comprehensive understanding of the geography of logistics facilities is required so as to anticipate and appropriately cater for the growing flow of goods. Informed by the analysis of literature, areas for future research include the determination of airfreight facilities (from logistics facilities in general) as well as analysis of the airfreight catchment of airports.

Variable Noise Reduction Systems for a Notional Supersonic Business Jet

A variable noise reduction system consists of equipment on board an airplane that is designed to reduce noise in the vicinity of airports. They are anticipated to be used on supersonic civil aircraft currently under development by industry. They are investigated in this paper for a notional 55,000 kg supersonic business jet. The airplane concept was developed by NASA for use in environmental impact studies conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organization. The variable noise reduction system investigated implements a programmed thrust lapse procedure and a programmed flap retraction procedure. The procedures are expected to reduce noise in aircraft certification as well as in operational practice. Behavior of the aircraft in a noise certification setting is considered. Variables of the procedures are optimized to reduce noise levels. The optimization results in a reduction of 5.2 decibels (in the cumulative effective perceived noise level, measured in EPNdB) relative to levels reported previously. Certification considerations unique to these systems are discussed for transport-category large airplanes and jet-powered airplanes. A novel method for evaluating lateral noise is used.

Impact of airport operations and road traffic on the particle number concentration in the vicinity of a suburban airport

The impact of airports on ambient air pollution is a major concern due to its impact on public health. This study analyzes the sub-micron total particle number concentration (PNC) as a proxy for ultrafine particles in the immediate vicinity of Berlin-Tegel Airport (TXL) based on a mobile measurement campaign in summer 2019. With predominantly westerly winds, 45 measurement runs took place along a 20–30 km route to the east of the airport. The highlights of the study are as follows: 1. Berlin-Tegel Airport had a distinct but a spatially limited impact on the residential areas to the east of the airport. 2. Particle number concentrations in the lee of the airport are significantly higher than the mean of the entire area. 3. Locations along the eastward extension of the runways are significantly more affected than those outside the approach corridor. 4. The impact of airport operations on PNC in the adjacent neighborhood is comparable to the combined impact of busy roads in the area. The closure of Berlin-Tegel Airport at the end of 2020 should have considerably improved the air quality in the residential areas in the close vicinity of the airport.

Application of a crackle-based adjustment to military aircraft noise levels

Crackle is a sound quality that can be identified in the jet noise of tactical aircraft and may contribute to perceived community noise levels in the vicinity of military airports. Crackle has been linked to the skewness of the waveform pressure derivative, or derivative skewness. Recently, listener trials quantified the perceptual relationships between derivative skewness, loudness, and annoyance. We present a method to calculate a crackle-based adjustment to aircraft noise levels derived from annoyance. This crackle adjustment is applied to a large sample set of community noise measurements in the vicinity of departing military aircraft. Finally, we develop an empirical model to apply crackle-based adjustments to community noise models of tactical aircraft departures. The empirical model allows airport planners to examine how aircraft flight paths, altitudes, and engine conditions affect the crackle adjustment, which is significant in the airport's immediate vicinity and along the aircraft departure path. [Work funded by an AFRL SBIR.]