Co-control of urban air pollutants and greenhouse gases in Mexico City

This study addresses the synergies of mitigation measures to control urban air pollutant and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, in developing integrated "co-control" strategies for Mexico City. First, existing studies of emissions reduction measures--PROAIRE (the air quality plan for Mexico City) and separate GHG studies--are used to construct a harmonized database of options. Second, linear programming (LP) is developed and applied as a decision-support tool to analyze least-cost strategies for meeting co-control targets for multiple pollutants. We estimate that implementing PROAIRE measures as planned will reduce 3.1% of the 2010 metropolitan CO2 emissions, in addition to substantial local air pollutant reductions. Applying the LP, PROAIRE emissions reductions can be met at a 20% lower cost, using only the PROAIRE measures, by adjusting investments toward the more cost-effective measures; lower net costs are possible by including cost-saving GHG mitigation measures, but with increased investment. When CO2 emission reduction targets are added to PROAIRE targets, the most cost-effective solutions use PROAIRE measures for the majority of local pollutant reductions, and GHG measures for additional CO2 control. Because of synergies, the integrated planning of urban-global co-control can be beneficial, but we estimate that for Mexico City these benefits are often small.     

A predictive model to correlate fuel specifications with on-road vehicles emissions in Mexico

Mexico is currently in the process of implementing its third air management program, which includes control measures targeting emissions reductions from mobile, point, and area sources. Achieving the program goals will require changes in the composition and in physical properties of gasoline and implementing an emissions reduction schedule. For that purpose a study was undertaken to support understanding of the effect of gasoline fuel parameters on exhaust emissions. Specifically, the relative impacts of Reid vapor pressure, distillation parameters, oxygen, sulfur, olefins, and aromatic contents on the exhaust emissions of in-use vehicles of the metropolitan area of Mexico City were investigated. The results were used to develop a model to predict CO, nitrogen oxides, total hydrocarbons, and toxic emissions such as benzene, 1,3-butadiene, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde. Also a statistical model that predicts evaporative emissions was built. Results of the present model are compared with those obtained using the complex model of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.     

面向减污降碳目标的纺织工业环境治理发展趋势

针对全球正面临着化石能源趋紧、温室气体排放过剩的问题,减污降碳要求已经迫在眉睫,作为支柱产业之一,纺织工业的低碳绿色发展对工业领域实现双碳目标有重要意义.首先,从全产业链分析了中国纺织工业产生能耗和排污的环节,剖析了纺织品从原料加工、染整加工以及成品加工过程中碳排放的主要环节和降碳潜力,然后对推动降碳的污染治理和资源回...     

Lanthanoid geochemistry of urban atmospheric particulate matter

Relatively little is known about the lanthanoid element (La to Lu) chemistry of inhalable urban atmospheric particulate matter (PM). PM samples collected during an air sampling campaign in the Mexico City area contain lanthanoid concentrations of mostly 1-10 ng m(-3), increasing with mass where resuspension of crustal PM is important (low PM2.5/PM10), but not where fine emissions from traffic and industry dominate (high PM2.5/ PM10). Samples show anthropogenic enrichment of lighter over heavier lanthanoids, and Ce enrichment relative to La and Sm occurs in the city center (especially PM10) possibly due to PM from road vehicle catalytic converters. La is especially enriched, although many samples show low La/V values (< 0.11), suggesting the dominating influence of fuel oil combustion sources rather than refinery emissions. We use La/Sm v La/ Ce, LaCeSm, and LaCeV plots to compare Mexico City aerosols with PM from other cities. Lanthanoid aerosol geochemistry can be used not only to identify refinery pollution events, but also as a marker for different hydrocarbon combustion emissions (e.g., oil or coal power stations) on urban background atmospheric PM.     

Impact of trash burning on air quality in Mexico City

Air pollution experienced by expanding urban areas is responsible for serious health effects and death for millions of people every year. Trash burning is a common disposal method in poor areas, yet it is uncontrolled in many countries, and its contribution to air pollution is unclear due to uncertainties in its emissions. Here we develop a new trash burning emission inventory for Mexico City based on inverse socioeconomic levels and recently measured emission factors, and apply a chemistry-transport model to analyze the effects on pollutant concentrations. Trash burning is estimated to emit 25 tons of primary organic aerosols (POA) per day, which is comparable to fossil fuel POA emissions in Mexico City, and causes an increase in average organic aerosol concentrations of ～0.3 μg m(-3) downtown and up to 2 μg m(-3) in highly populated suburbs near the sources of emission. An evaluation using submicrometer antimony suggests that our emission estimates are reasonable. Mitigation of trash burning could reduce the levels of organic aerosols by 2-40% and those of PM(2.5) by 1-15% over the metropolitan area. The trash burning contributions to carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds were found to be very small (<3%), and consequently the contributions to secondary nitrate, sulfate, and secondary organic aerosols are also very small.     

Determining thresholds for mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions

A number of countries are considering implementation of reporting requirements for greenhouse gases. Some reporting systems have been proposed that would require each entity or facility exceeding an annual emissions threshold to report their emissions to a governmental agency. The analysis presented here provides a first approximation of the number of facilities in selected U.S. economic sectors that would report under several different reporting thresholds. Results indicate that thresholds below 10,000 Mg of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2E) per year may bring in relatively large numbers of facilities while minimally increasing the percentage of reported emissions. None of the reporting thresholds considered in this analysis would account for the majority of greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. agricultural, transportation, or residential and commercial building sectors. If these sectors, in which large numbers of farms, vehicles, and buildings each emit relatively small amounts of greenhouse gases, are to be included in a reporting framework, additional or alternative approaches to reporting should be considered. Alternative approaches may include creating separate thresholds for individual greenhouse gases instead of using an aggregated CO2E unit, creating separate reporting thresholds for individual sectors, or combining sources of small emissions into a single reporting entity.     

Climate impacts of air quality policy: switching to a natural gas-fueled public transportation system in New Delhi

Between 2001 and 2003, public transport vehicles in New Delhi were required to switch their fuel to natural gas in an attemptto reduce their air pollution impacts. This study examines the climatic impacts of New Delhi's fuel switching policy, and outlines implications for such efforts in rapidly industrializing countries. Natural gas is mostly composed of methane, an important greenhouse gas. Emitted aerosols (black carbon, particulate organic carbon, and sulfate) also cause radiative forcing. We find that methane and black carbon emissions are critical contributors to the change in carbon dioxide equivalent [CO2(e)] emissions. In New Delhi, the switch to natural gas results in a 30% increase in CO2(e) when the impact of aerosols is not considered. However, when aerosol emissions are taken into account in our model, the net effect of the switch is estimated to be a 10% reduction in CO2(e), and there may be as much as a 30% reduction in CO2(e). There is significant potential for emissions reductions through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Clean Development Mechanism for such fuel switching projects.     

分析企业温室气体排放信息披露制度

随着我国社会经济的不断发展,目前温室气体对于大气环境造成了极大地破坏,而温室气体排放信息的披露对于有效控制温室气体排放量具有重要的意义和作用,是推动碳交易以及减少碳排放量的基本前提和保障.本文主要针对企业温室气体排放信息披露制度进行简单分析,对我国目前企业的相关碳排放的控制制度进行简要分析,剖析碳排放信息披露过程中所存...     

Quantitative measurement of direct nitrous oxide emissions from microalgae cultivation

Although numerous lifecycle assessments (LCA) of microalgae-based biofuels have suggested net reductions of greenhouse gas emissions, limited experimental data exist on direct emissions from microalgae cultivation systems. For example, nitrous oxide (N(2)O) is a potent greenhouse gas that has been detected from microalgae cultivation. However, little quantitative experimental data exist on direct N(2)O emissions from microalgae cultivation, which has inhibited LCA performed to date. In this study, microalgae species Nannochloropsis salina was cultivated with diurnal light-dark cycling using a nitrate nitrogen source. Gaseous N(2)O emissions were quantitatively measured using Fourier transform infrared spectrometry. Under a nitrogen headspace (photobioreactor simulation), the reactors exhibited elevated N(2)O emissions during dark periods, and reduced N(2)O emissions during light periods. Under air headspace conditions (open pond simulation), N(2)O emissions were negligible during both light and dark periods. Results show that N(2)O production was induced by anoxic conditions when nitrate was present, suggesting that N(2)O was produced by denitrifying bacteria within the culture. The presence of denitrifying bacteria was verified through PCR-based detection of norB genes and antibiotic treatments, the latter of which substantially reduced N(2)O emissions. Application of these results to LCA and strategies for growth management to reduce N(2)O emissions are discussed.     

肉制品生命周期中温室气体排放及减控措施探析

低碳经济号召下,发展以低能耗、低污染、低排放为基础的低碳食品已成为越来越多人的共识.肉制品是重要的温室气体排放源.本文分析了肉制品生命周期温室气体排放,并且从畜禽养殖、生产加工、食用及废物处置等环节提出了降低肉制品生命周期温室气体排放的技术措施.     

Landfill-gas-to-Energy projects: analysis of net private and social benefits

Methane emissions from municipal landfills represent 3% of the total United States greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. These methane emissions can be released to the air or collected and flared. This landfill gas also has the potential to be used to generate electricity. In 1994,the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) created the Landfill Methane Outreach Program, with the objective of promoting the development of landfill-gas-to-energy projects around the country. There are currently 2,300 active landfills in the United States. Although there are already 382 operational projects, there are many more landfills with the potential to use the gas. EPA has identified at least 630 candidate landfills for energy projects, and many more have still not been identified. The objective of this paper is to evaluate total private and social benefits of landfill-gas-to-energy projects, taking into consideration not only the costs of installing and maintaining the necessary equipment and the revenues obtained from selling the electricity but also a valuation of the greenhouse gas emissions that would be prevented and the emissions of criteria pollutants created by the electricity generating equipment. It also evaluates the breakeven government subsidies that would be required to make such projects economically viable from private and social perspectives in comparison to current subsidies. It was found that the private breakeven price of electricity for these projects is lower than dollar 0.04/kWh. Moreover, the optimum social subsidywas found to be less than dollar 0.0085/ kWh, which is about 40% lower than the currently available federal tax break of dollar 0.015/kWh. The method developed for this paper can be applied to other renewable energy technologies, to show their relative social costs and benefits.     

Energy-related emissions from telework

Telework is a growing phenomenon that is thought to save energy and air emissions. This paper applies a systems model to telework and nontelework scenarios in order to quantify greenhouse gas and other air emissions from transportation, heating, cooling, lighting, and electronic and electrical equipment use both at the company and the home office. Using United States data, a WWW-based, scalable decision-support tool was created to evaluate the environmental impacts of teleworkers. For a typical case reflecting United States teleworker patterns, the analysis found that telework has the potential to reduce air emissions. However, Monte Carlo simulation employed to perform a probabilistic analysis over a set of likely parameters has revealed that telework may not affect equally the emissions of all types of pollutants. It may decrease CO2, NOx, SO2, PM10, and CO but not N2O and CH4 emissions. Therefore, the scope and goal of telework programs must be defined early in the implementation process. Work-related transportation (commuting) impacts could be reduced as a result of telework; however, home-related impacts due to an employee spending additional time at home could potentially offset these reductions. Company office-related impacts may not be reduced unless the office space is shared with other employees during telework days or eliminated entirely. In states with high telework potential (California, Georgia, Illinois, New York, Texas), telework could save emissions, but it would depend on commuting and climatic patterns and the electricity mix. Environmentally beneficial telework programs are found to depend mainly on commuting patterns, induced energy usage, and characteristics of the office and home space and equipment use.     

大气环境中挥发性有机废气的治理技术

目前,我国经济已由高速增长阶段转向高质量发展阶段,各个行业都获得了良好发展,但人们在环境保护方面的意识还比较薄弱,导致环境污染治理工作没有得到有效落实.尤其是在日常生活以及生产活动中废气的排放量显著超标,已严重威胁到居民的身体健康以及生活质量.由此可见,大气环境污染是当前亟须处理的问题.本文主要分析了挥发性有机废气可能...     

Effects of nitrogen fertilizer application on greenhouse gas emissions and economics of corn production

Nitrogen fertilizer plays an important role in corn cultivation in terms of both economic and environmental aspects. Nitrogen fertilizer positively affects corn yield and the soil organic carbon level, but it also has negative environmental effects through nitrogen-related emissions from soil (e.g., N20, NOx, NO3(-) leaching, etc.). Effects of nitrogen fertilizer on greenhouse gas emissions associated with corn grain are investigated via life cycle assessment. Ecoefficiency analysis is also used to determine an economically and environmentally optimal nitrogen application rate (NAR). The ecoefficiency index in this study is defined as the ratio of economic return due to nitrogen fertilizer to the greenhouse gas emissions of corn cultivation. Greenhouse gas emissions associated with corn grain decrease as NAR increases at a lower NAR until a minimum greenhouse gas emission level is reached because corn yield and soil organic carbon level increase with NAR. Further increasing NAR after a minimum greenhouse gas emission level raises greenhouse gas emissions associated with corn grain. Increased greenhouse gas emissions of corn grain due to nitrous oxide emissions from soil are much higher than reductions of greenhouse gas emissions of corn grain due to corn yield and changes in soil organic carbon levels at a higher NAR. Thus, there exists an environmentally optimal NAR in terms of greenhouse gas emissions. The trends of the ecoefficiency index are similar to those of economic return to nitrogen and greenhouse gas emissions associated with corn grain. Therefore, an appropriate NAR could enhance profitability as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with corn grain.     

关于乌鲁木齐市冬季大气污染防治管控工作的几点思考

冬季乌鲁木齐全域的污染防治管控工作要从控制污染源头和形成入手,对城市周边未实现煤改气区域,因地制宜地推行低排放型的合理供热方式.对排污类企业以及相关人为能引起大气污染的行为和活动,可采取分时段、分情况限制的管控措施.还可以通过必要的污染物检测手段,了解大气污染物的具体浓度,并采取相应的应急处理措施,从而提高冬季大气污染...     

Identifying improvement potentials in cement production with life cycle assessment

Cement production is an environmentally relevant process responsible for 5% of total anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions and 7% of industrial fuel use. In this study, life cycle assessment is used to evaluate improvement potentials in the cement production process in Europe and the USA. With a current fuel substitution rate of 18% in Europe and 11% in the USA, both regions have a substantial potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save virgin resources by further increasing the coprocessing of waste fuels. Upgrading production technology would be particularly effective in the USA where many kiln systems with very low energy efficiency are still in operation. Using best available technology and a thermal substitution rate of 50% for fuels, greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced by 9% for Europe and 18% for the USA per tonne of cement. Since clinker production is the dominant pollution producing step in cement production, the substitution of clinker with mineral components such as ground granulated blast furnace slag or fly ash is an efficient measure to reduce the environmental impact. Blended cements exhibit substantially lower environmental footprints than Portland cement, even if the substitutes feature lower grindability and require additional drying and large transport distances. The highest savings in CO(2) emissions and resource consumption are achieved with a combination of measures in clinker production and cement blending.     

Long-Term Energy and Climate Implications of Carbon Capture and Storage Deployment Strategies in the US Coal-Fired Electricity Fleet

To understand the long-term energy and climate implications of different implementation strategies for carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the US coal-fired electricity fleet, we integrate three analytical elements: scenario projection of energy supply systems, temporally explicit life cycle modeling, and time-dependent calculation of radiative forcing. Assuming continued large-scale use of coal for electricity generation, we find that aggressive implementation of CCS could reduce cumulative greenhouse gas emissions (CO(2), CH(4), and N(2)O) from the US coal-fired power fleet through 2100 by 37-58%. Cumulative radiative forcing through 2100 would be reduced by only 24-46%, due to the front-loaded time profile of the emissions and the long atmospheric residence time of CO(2). The efficiency of energy conversion and carbon capture technologies strongly affects the amount of primary energy used but has little effect on greenhouse gas emissions or radiative forcing. Delaying implementation of CCS deployment significantly increases long-term radiative forcing. This study highlights the time-dynamic nature of potential climate benefits and energy costs of different CCS deployment pathways and identifies opportunities and constraints of successful CCS implementation.     

制浆造纸工业空气污染问题与对策

概述了制浆造纸工业空气污染的现状,并对空气污染物中恶臭气体、挥发性有机物、悬浮颗粒物和温室气体主要成分的产生及其危害进行详细介绍;同时介绍了空气样品采集方法与检测方法;从污染物治理和生产技术控制两个方面,提出治理制浆造纸工业空气污染的对策。     

造纸废水处理中温室气体减排的溶解氧智能优化控制

造纸工业普遍采用活性污泥法处理废水,然而对该过程中温室气体排放却关注很少,缺少温室气体在线监测和减排措施。针对这一问题,提出了一种基于自适应回归神经网络PI控制(Adapted Kernel Regression Back Propagation Neural Network-Proportional Integral Control, AKRBP-PI)的溶解氧分层优化控制策略,旨在保证出水质量的同时,减少温室气体排放。该优化控制基于溶解氧对温室气体排放的作用机制,采用分层思想,根据出水污染物含量与溶解氧的函数约束关系,采用遗传算法求解溶解氧优化设定值,实现神经网络跟踪控制。仿真结果表明,对比开环控制,AKRBP-PI方案的出水污染物含量均未超标,温室气体总排放量减少了8.6%。其中,减少的温室气体主要来自曝气机耗电量的下降。     

Characterization factors for water consumption and greenhouse gas emissions based on freshwater fish species extinction

Human-induced changes in water consumption and global warming are likely to reduce the species richness of freshwater ecosystems. So far, these impacts have not been addressed in the context of life cycle assessment (LCA). Here, we derived characterization factors for water consumption and global warming based on freshwater fish species loss. Calculation of characterization factors for potential freshwater fish losses from water consumption were estimated using a generic species-river discharge curve for 214 global river basins. We also derived characterization factors for potential freshwater fish species losses per unit of greenhouse gas emission. Based on five global climate scenarios, characterization factors for 63 greenhouse gas emissions were calculated. Depending on the river considered, characterization factors for water consumption can differ up to 3 orders of magnitude. Characterization factors for greenhouse gas emissions can vary up to 5 orders of magnitude, depending on the atmospheric residence time and radiative forcing efficiency of greenhouse gas emissions. An emission of 1 ton of CO? is expected to cause the same impact on potential fish species disappearance as the water consumption of 10-1000 m3, depending on the river basin considered. Our results make it possible to compare the impact of water consumption with greenhouse gas emissions.