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CHARACTERIZATION OF THE FUGITIVE PARTICULATE EMISSIONS FROM CONSTRUCTION MUD/DIRT CARRYOUT
Citation:
Kinsey*, J S., K J. Linna**, W Squier, G. Muleski, AND C. Cowherd. CHARACTERIZATION OF THE FUGITIVE PARTICULATE EMISSIONS FROM CONSTRUCTION MUD/DIRT CARRYOUT. JOURNAL OF AIR AND WASTE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION. Air & Waste Management Association, Pittsburgh, PA, 54(11):1394-1404, (2004).
Description:
The paper describes a research program which directly determined mud/dirt carryout emission factors for both particulate matter (PM) with aerodynamic diameters of 10 micrometers or less (PM10) and PM with aerodynamic diameters of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5). The research was carried out at a major construction project located in metropolitan Kansas City. Although the fugitive dust associated with construction mud/dirt carryout can represent a substantial portion of the emissions inventory in non-attainment areas, it has not been well characterized by direct sampling methods. The research also assessed the contribution of automotive emissions to the total PM2.5 burden and determined the "baseline" emissions from the test road. As part of the study, both time-integrated and continuous exposure profiling methods were used to assess the PM emissions, including particle size and elemental composition. This research resulted in overall PM10 and PM2.5 emission factors of 6 and 0.2 g/vehicle, respectively. Although the PM10 emission factor is within the range of prior Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidance, the PM2.5 emission factor is far lower than prior estimates published by EPA. In addition, based on both the particle size and chemical data obtained in the study, the PM2.5 emissions appear to be mainly attributable to automotive exhaust from light-duty, gasoline-powered vehicles and not the fugitive dust associated with reentrained mud/dirt carryout.