An analysis of atmospheric stability indices and parameters under air pollution conditions

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Yavuz V.

Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, cilt.195, sa.8, 2023 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 195 Sayı: 8
  • Basım Tarihi: 2023
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1007/s10661-023-11556-4
  • Dergi Adı: Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, ABI/INFORM, Agricultural & Environmental Science Database, Aqualine, Aquatic Science & Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA), BIOSIS, CAB Abstracts, Compendex, EMBASE, Environment Index, Food Science & Technology Abstracts, Geobase, Greenfile, Pollution Abstracts, Public Affairs Index, Veterinary Science Database, Civil Engineering Abstracts
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: air pollution, air quality, atmospheric stability, stability index, stability parameter, thermodynamic index
  • Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
  • Samsun Üniversitesi Adresli: Hayır

Özet

The stability of the atmosphere plays an important role in changes in air pollutant concentrations. Stable atmospheric conditions cause pollutant concentrations to reach high values, which degrades the air quality in a particular region. This study aims to reveal the relationship between atmospheric stability indices/parameters (thermodynamic indices) and changes in air pollutant concentrations. Pollutant concentrations of PM10, PM2.5, SO2, NO2, CO, and O3 were statistically analyzed for a 10-year (2013-2022) period for nine air quality stations located in the megacity Istanbul. Based on national and international air quality standards, 145 episode days were determined for the days when these parameters exceeded the threshold values. Five stability indices (Showalter Index – SI, Lifted Index – LI, Severe Weather Index – SWEAT, K Index – KI, Totals Totals Index – TTI), and three stability parameters (Convective Available Potential Energy – CAPE, Convective Inhibition – CIN, Bulk Richardson Number – BRN) were used to determine the stability of the atmosphere for episode days. It has been found that in cases where air pollutant concentrations are high, the stability parameters reveal the stability of the atmosphere better than the stability indices. It was also found that there was at least one vertical inversion layer on 122 of the 145 episode days, these layers mostly (84%) occurred between the surface and 850 hPa levels, and the layer thicknesses were mostly between 0-250 m (84%).