Seminar

Abstract

Measurements of air pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHGs) are crucial for understanding and mitigating the environmental and health impacts associated with air pollution and climate change. For the past ten years, NOAA Air Resources lab and University of Maryland have been collaborating to measure greenhouse gases (CO₂, and CH₄) along with a suite of air pollutants related to photochemical smog (O₃, NOx, CO, and VOCs) and particulate matter (black carbon and aerosol optical properties) from a research aircraft and more recently from a mobile lab in the Mid-Atlantic region. These measurements complement surface air quality and greenhouse gas monitoring networks and provide input to a variety of models used to determine emissions. Some findings include (1) ozone in DC-Baltimore had a nonlinear response to NOx reductions but got "over the hump" and started to be sensitive to NOx; (2) ozone production in New York City has been sensitive to VOCs and is reaching the turning point to be sensitive to NOx; (3) methane emission inventories for DC-Baltimore are a factor of 2-3 lower than the observations; (4) CH4 emission rate of 1.1% of total production in the SW Marcellus in 2015/2016; (5) mobile measurements of GHGs and air pollutants are useful to survey point sources and address environmental justice issues; (6) Measurements from a near-road site have shed light on the efficiency of combustion and pollution control as well as the temperature and speed dependence of mobile emissions. Scientific information from these field measurements has been provided to policymakers like Maryland Department of Environment to establish cost-effective policies to reduce emissions to improve air quality and mitigate climate change.

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Dr. Xinrong Ren is a Physical Scientist at NOAA Air Resources Laboratory. He received his PhD in Environmental Sciences at Peking University. His current research includes his participation in the AEROMMA campaign in Summer 2023, the greenhouse gas monitoring program, the aircraft observations of the Tracers of Opportunity project, the Air Pollution in Maryland project and the Fluxes of Greenhouse Gases in Maryland project.