Effects of Atmospheric Parameters on the Concentration of Photochemical Air Pollutants

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a study in which a numerical model for photochemical air pollution was used to assess the effect of atmospheric parameters on concentration levels of both primary and secondary air pollutants in an urban area. Quantitative estimates were obtained of relative changes in CO, NO, O3 and NO2 concentrations in response to relative changes in wind speed, vertical diffusivity, mixing depth, radiation intensity and emission rate. The results show that although concentration levels of all four pollutants are most sensitive to variations in wind speed, they are also sensitive to variations in emission rate and, to a lesser degree, to variations in mixing depth and vertical diffusivity. For nitric oxide and ozone, radiation intensity is another important parameter affecting the concentration distributions.