Energy and the Environment

1. Energy and the Environment Fall 2013 Instructor: Xiaodong Chu Email：chuxd@sdu.edu.cn Office Tel.: 81696127

2. Flashbacks of Last Lecture • Air pollution • Air-quality modeling • Photo-oxidants • Acid deposition • Water pollution • Land pollution

3. Air Pollution Cases: Smog And Haze Primary Pollutants Secondary Pollutants CO CO2 NO2 SO2 NO NO SO3 CH4 and most other hydrocarbons HNO3 H2SO4 O3 PANs Most suspended particles H2O2 Most NO3– and SO42– salts Natural Source Human Source Stationary Human Source Mobile Sources and Types of Air Pollutants

4. Industrial Smog • Chemical composition of industrial smog • How pollutants are formed from burning coal and Oil, leading to industrial smog?

5. Ammonium sulfate [(NH 4 )2SO4] Ammonia (NH3) Sulfuric acid (H2SO4) Carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) Water vapor (H2O) Sulfur trioxide (SO3) Oxygen (O2) Sulfur dioxide (SO2) Burning coal and oil Oxygen (O2) Sulfur (S) in coal and oil Carbon (C) in coal and oil

6. Photochemical Smog • Photochemical Smog • Chemical composition • Sources • VOCs + NOx + Heat + Sunlight yields • Ground level O3 and other photochemical oxidants • Aldehydes • Other secondary pollutants

7. PANS and other pollutants Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) Ozone (O3) Oxygen (O2) Nitric oxide (NO) + Oxygen atom (O) Water vapor (H2O) Hydrocarbons UV radiation Peroxyacyl nitrates (PANs) Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) Oxygen (O2) Nitric oxide (NO) Oxygen (O2) Burning fossil fuels Nitrogen (N) in fossil fuel

8. Ingredients of Photochemical Smog • Three main ingredients of photochemical smog • High automobile traffic volume • Plenty of sunlight • Very stable atmosphere • Temperature inversion

9. Temperature Inversion • A temperature inversion occurs when cold air is trapped near Earth’s surface by a layer of warmer air • Polluted air can then be trapped near Earth’s surface

10. Temperature Inversion • Temperature inversions can occur during cold, cloudy weather in a valley surrounded by mountains • Frequent and prolonged temperature inversions can also occur in an area with a sunny climate, light winds, mountains on three sides, and the ocean on the other • A layer of descending warm air from a high-pressure system prevents ocean-cooled air near the ground from ascending enough to disperse and dilute pollutants

11. Continental Surface Visibility (Human Observers) NOAA NCDC Global Summary of the Day (SOD) 7000 Observations Low Visibility High Visibility

12. Regional Haze • Regional haze is visibility impairment that is produced by many sources and activities which emit fine particles and their precursors and which are located across a broad geographic area • Pollutants come from a variety of natural (e.g., windblown dust, soot from wildfires) and manmade (e.g., motor vehicles, electric utility and industrial fuel burning) sources. Some haze-causing particles are directly emitted to the air while others are formed when gases emitted to the air form particles as they are transported. • Haze is caused when sunlight encounters tiny pollution particles in the air. Some light is absorbed by particles. Other light is scattered away before it reaches an observer. More pollutants mean more absorption and scattering of light, thus reducing the clarity and changing the color of what one sees. Some types of particles, such as sulfates, scatter more light than others, particularly during humid conditions.

13. Regional Haze • Regional haze arises when the contributions of many individual sources are mixed together during long range transport • The resulting spatially uniform hazy air mass can cover multi-state areas in excess of 1000 km in size

14. Global Pattern of Haze Based on Visibility Data • A rough indicator of PM2.5 concentration is the extinction coefficient corrected for weather conditions and humidity. There are over 7000 qualified surface-based visibility stations in the world. • The June-August haze is most pronounced in southeast Asia and over sub-Saharan Africa where the seasonal average PM2.5 is estimated to be over 50 g/m3. • Interestingly, the industrial regions of the world such as eastern North America, Europe and China-Japan exhibit only moderate levels of haze during this time.

15. Case Study: Los Angeles Air Quality Photochemical smog in downtown Los Angeles, California (USA)

16. Ingredients of Photochemical Smog • Due to the lack of efficient public transportation, residents there depend on their cars • Los Angeles’ climate is dominated by the Eastern Pacific High • Subsidence also produces clear condition and hence more sunlight • Subsidence produces compression heating of the air, and the temperature is often higher at a few hundred feet level than at surface – an inversion condition, an absolutely stable condition • The topography of Los Angeles – a basin also helps to trap air pollutants

17. Valleys Trap Pollutants L.A. is in a basin surrounded by mountains that trap pollutants and usually has onshore flow that creates frequent inversions. Pollutants can only escape through narrow canyons

18. Sources of Smog in Los Angeles

19. Typical Daily Concentration Variation of Smog Chemicals

20. Case Study: Asia Brown Cloud • Particles from airborne pollution, such as the "Giant Brown Cloud," can travel all around the globe. In April of 2001, NASA satellites saw a massive dust storm appear over China. The densest portion of the aerosol pollution traveled east over Japan, the Pacific Ocean, and, within a week, the United States. —— NASA

21. Asia Brown Cloud: Causes • Clearing and burning forest for planting crops • Burning of coal, diesel, and other fossil fuels in industries , vehicles and homes Clearing forest and burning fossil fuels

22. Asia Brown Cloud: Chemical Composition Dust, smoke and compounds • 1/3 of it is dust, smoke, and ash • Rest is acidic compounds, soot, toxic metals (mercury and lead), hundreds of organic compounds and fly ash

23. Asia Brown Cloud: Areas Impacted • Much of India, Bangladesh • South of China • Open Sea east of this area South Asia

24. Asia Brown Cloud: Impacts • Photosynthesis has been reduced by 7-10% • Acid in the haze fall to the surface and damage crops, trees, and aquatic life Environment and health

25. Case Study: 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Causes • Indonesian farmers carry out the “slash-and-burn” method to make land for crop-planting • Setting fire to large pieces of land to burn down trees and leave only bare ground • Cheapest and fastest way to obtain clear land • Serious implications – severe haze contaminates air in neighbouring countries Farmers’ method of clearing the land

26. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Causes Large Corporations: Timber and palm plantations • Corporations want the cheapest way to clear space to start plantations – save money • Employ workers to set forest-fires • Inconsiderate and unethical in the long run • Damage the environment

27. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts TOMS for 1997 Southeast Asian haze

28. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts • Disruption in ecosystem • Flora and fauna burnt and lost • Endangers more species of animals • Destroys rare species of organisms • Pollute the air – pollutants blown to neighboring countries (transboundary pollution) Environment

29. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts • Fires produce greenhouse gases • Sulphur Dioxide • Ozone • Nitrogen Dioxide • Carbon Monoxide • Affects atmosphere negatively • Speeds up global warming • Shifting climate changes • Unpredictable weather Environment (cont’d)

30. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts Health • Triggeres off health conditions • Respiratory related problems • Asthma attacks • Bronchitis • Coughing / wheezing • Runny noses • Sore throats • Eye / skin irritation • Heart conditions

31. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts Health (cont’d) • Haze particles (Ozone, Sulphur Dioxide) cause damage to lungs and hearts • Particulate Matter 10 (PM10) cause lungs to function at decreased rate – shortness of breath

32. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts • Flights disrupted (13 cancelled) and delayed • Tourists shun countries affected by haze • Tourists stranded at the airport as they have already checked out of hotels • Unsatisfied and unhappy about their vacations Tourism

33. 1997 Southeast Asian Haze: Impacts • Surge in medical costs • Treatment of cough • Other haze-related illnesses • More people ill; less people turn up for work – reduce efficiency of different industries during that period • Retailers and recreation businesses affected – most people try to stay at home during the haze period Economy

34. Laws and Regulations Can Reduce Outdoor Air Pollution • United States • Clean Air Acts: 1970, 1977, and 1990 created regulations enforced by states and cities • EPA • National ambient air quality standards for 6 outdoor pollutants • National emission standards for 188 hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) • Toxic Release Inventory (TRI)

35. The Clean Air Act • Authorizes EPA to set limits on amount of specific air pollutants permitted • Focuses on 6 pollutants: • lead, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and ozone • Act has led to decreases

36. Laws and Regulations Can Reduce Outdoor Air Pollution • Good news in developed countries • Decrease in emissions • Use of low-sulfur diesel fuel • Cuts pollution • Less-developed countries • More air pollution

37. Case Study: U.S. Air Pollution Can Be Improved • Rely on prevention of pollution, not cleanup • Sharply reduce emissions from power plants, industrial plants, and other industry • Raise fuel-efficiency for cars, SUVs, and light trucks • Better regulation of emissions of motorcycles and two-cycle gasoline engines

38. Case Study: U.S. Air Pollution Can Be Improved • Regulate air pollution for oceangoing ships in American ports • Regulate emissions at U.S. airports • Sharply reduce indoor pollution • Increased and more accurate monitoring of air pollutants

39. There Are Many Ways to Reduce Air Pollution • There are ways to deal with • Stationary source air pollution • Motor vehicle air pollution • New cars have lower emissions

40. Stationary Source Air Pollution

41. Motor Vehicle Air Pollution