10th International Aerosol Conference
September 2 - September 7, 2018
America's Center Convention Complex
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Abstract View


Air Quality Monitoring in the San Juan Metro Area in the Aftermath of Hurricane Maria Using Lower-Cost RAMP Monitors

ELVIS TORRES-DELGADO, R. Subramanian, Aja Ellis, Carl Malings, Rebecca Tanzer, Maité Morales-Medina, Felipe Rivera-Adorno, Darrel Baumgardner, Albert Presto, Stephan Borrmann, Roberto Rondanelli, Mirko Del Hoyo, Rémi Losno, Olga L. Mayol-Bracero, University of Puerto Rico

     Abstract Number: 1469
     Working Group: Low-Cost and Portable Sensors

Abstract
In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, the electricity grid in Puerto Rico was devastated, with over 90% of the island without electricity. While the electricity grid is being repaired, backup generators are widely used, sometimes as the main source of electricity. The hurricane also damaged the island’s existing air monitoring network and the University of Puerto Rico’s (UPR) observing facilities. We deployed four lower-cost air quality monitors (Real-time Affordable Multi-Pollutant sensors, RAMPs), a Met-One black carbon (BC) monitor, and an Aeth Labs micro Aethalometer in the San Juan Metro Area in November 2017. Later, we installed an Optical Particle Counter (OPC) and a condensation Particle Counter (CPC). The first month of data collected with the RAMPs shows high sulfur dioxide (SO2) and carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations of varying magnitudes each night. SO2 and CO were strongly correlated (r2 >0.9) with each other at two locations ~5 km apart (UPR and an industrial area, Puerto Nuevo), suggesting a single source type. BC measured at the UPR site is also well correlated with CO and SO2. While the RAMPs are not certified as a federal equivalent method, the RAMP SO2 data suggests that the EPA’s daily 1-hour maximum standard for SO2 (75 ppb) was exceeded on almost 80% of the first 30 days of deployment. In the wake of Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico was granted a waiver from ultralow sulfur diesel (ULSD) requirements which, coupled with the continuing lack of grid power, appears to have significantly degraded the air quality in the region. In this presentation, we will show results from nine months of sampling at different locations across the San Juan Metro Area, including the effects of electricity grid restoration as the rebuilding work progresses.