You are here:
Determining Spatial Variability in PM2.5 Source Impacts across Detroit, MI
Citation:
DUVALL, R. M., D. A. OLSON, G. A. NORRIS, J. M. BURKE, R. VEDANTHAM, AND R. W. WILLIAMS. Determining Spatial Variability in PM2.5 Source Impacts across Detroit, MI. ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 47(February):491-498, (2012).
Impact/Purpose:
The National Exposure Research Laboratory′s (NERL) Human Exposure and Atmospheric Sciences Division (HEASD) conducts research in support of EPA′s mission to protect human health and the environment. HEASD′s research program supports Goal 1 (Clean Air) and Goal 4 (Healthy People) of EPA′s strategic plan. More specifically, our division conducts research to characterize the movement of pollutants from the source to contact with humans. Our multidisciplinary research program produces Methods, Measurements, and Models to identify relationships between and characterize processes that link source emissions, environmental concentrations, human exposures, and target-tissue dose. The impact of these tools is improved regulatory programs and policies for EPA.
Description:
Intra-urban variability in air pollution source impacts was investigated using receptor modeling of daily speciated PM2.5 measurements collected at residential outdoor locations across Detroit, MI (Wayne County) as part of the Detroit Exposure and Aerosol Research Study (DEARS) during summer and winter from 2004 to 2006. Six areas were selected for the residential monitoring in the DEARS to capture impacts from different sources including local industry, motor vehicles, and upwind regional sources. PM2.5 measurements were also collected at the Allen Park, MI Chemical Speciation Network (CSN) site for comparison with the residential outdoor sites. Sources impacting PM2.5 were quantified using the EPA Chemical Mass Balance Model (CMB 8.2). Published source profiles were used as input to CMB along with a mixed industrial profile and a steel manufacturing profile obtained by applying the EPA Positive Matrix Factorization Model (PMF 4.0) to CSN data from a Midwestern U.S. site with industrial sources similar to Detroit. Major PM2.5 sources impacting the Allen Park and residential monitoring areas during DEARS included motor vehicles (24 - 36% by mass), secondary sulfate/coal combustion (17 - 35%), secondary nitrate (16 - 37%) and organic matter (17 - 21%). Road dust, steel manufacturing, and mixed industrial sources contributed less than 11% by mass. CMB source contribution estimates for Allen Park during the DEARS generally compared well to CMB estimates from the collocated year-long CSN measurements using the same source profiles. CMB source contributions during DEARS showed similar contributions across the residential monitoring areas for secondary sulfate/coal combustion and secondary nitrate consistent with regional impacts for these sources. Contributions from motor vehicles, steel manufacturing, and mixed industrial sources varied across the DEARS monitoring areas, indicating impacts from local sources within the Detroit airshed that may not be well characterized by the Allen Park monitoring location.
URLs/Downloads:
Atmospheric Environment
Determining Spatial Variability in PM2.5 Source Impacts across Detroit, MI (PDF, NA pp, 512 KB, about PDF)