10th International Aerosol Conference September 2 - September 7, 2018 America's Center Convention Complex St. Louis, Missouri, USA
Abstract View
Air Quality with Particulate Matter Assessment in Road Tunnels in China and Pakistan
ZONA ZAIDI, Zulfiqar Ali, Romaisa Qureshi, Irfan Zainab, Syed Turab Raza, Zaheer Ahmad Nasir, Ian Colbeck, Liu Weilong, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 54590, Pakistan
Abstract Number: 762 Working Group: Aerosol Exposure
Abstract Breathing in road tunnels may endanger your health. Poor air quality on roads and in tunnels threatens the health and well-being of people travelling in vehicles. Air pollutant in road tunnels could be in the form of a solid particle, liquid droplets or as gases. The objective of this research was to assess air pollution in 44 road tunnels of China i.e., Chengdu to Lang Musi Zhen (32°39'35N, 103°36'09E at 2876m elevation) and 5 tunnels of Pakistan i.e., Shishkat to Attabad (36◦39.747N, 074◦50.586E at 2839m elevation). Metrological parameters, CO2 concentration along with different particulate matter were assessed using standard protocol. Independent t-test showed PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and PMtotal concentrations for China and Pakistan were non-significantly different from each other with p-value 0.071, 0.069, 0.071 and 0.07 respectively while temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide were significantly different from each other having p-value 0.000, 0.000 and 0.011 respectively which are also justified by Pearson co-relation. Spearmen’s correlation assessed relationship between different parameters and their associative behaviour and showed temperature was non-significantly correlated with particulate matter, humidity and CO2. While PM2.5, humidity and CO2 were significantly correlated. CO2 concentration as linear with vehicular emission was higher inside of tunnel in china but traffic blockage in Pakistan rise its high levels outside of it. The confinement of tunnel’s air aided by its boundary along with massive traffic becomes the major factor in rise of temperature inside of tunnel along with humidity as water drops trap inside of it due to lesser air currents.