ATMOSPHERIC STABILITY SCHEMES

Atmospheric stability can be described by comparing the actual environmental

lapse rate to the adiabatic lapse rate. Meteorologists distinguish three states of
atmospheric stability, stable, neutral, and unstable, These states can be defined by
the value of their lapse rates:
dTe
Unstable: ()env < Gadiabatic
dZ
dTe
Neutral: ()env = Gadiabatic
dZ
dTe
Stable:
()env > Gadiabatic
dZ
Air pollution dispersion models

Box model -It assumes the airshed (i.e., a given volume of atmospheric air in
a geographical region) is in the shape of a box. It also assumes that the air
pollutants inside the box are homogeneously distributed and uses that
assumption to estimate the average pollutant concentrations anywhere within
the airshed.

Gaussian Plume model - The Gaussian model perhaps the most commonly
used model type. It assumes that the air pollutant dispersion has a Gaussian
distribution, meaning that the pollutant distribution has a normal probability
distribution. Gaussian models are most often used for predicting the
dispersion of continuous, buoyant air pollution plumes originating from
ground-level or elevated sources. Gaussian models may also be used for
predicting the dispersion of non-continuous air pollution plumes (called puff
models). The primary algorithm used in Gaussian modeling is the
Generalized Dispersion Equation for a Continuous Point-Source Plume.

Lagrangian model - a Lagrangian dispersion model mathematically follows

pollution plume parcels (also called particles) as the parcels move in the
atmosphere and they model the motion of the parcels as a random walk
process. The Lagrangian model then calculates the air pollution dispersion by
computing the statistics of the trajectories of a large number of the pollution
plume parcels.

Eulerian model - an Eulerian dispersions model is similar to a Lagrangian

model in that it also tracks the movement of a large number of pollution
plume parcels as they move from their initial location.

Dense gas model - Dense gas models are models that simulate the dispersion
of dense gas pollution plumes.
Air Sampling Pumps: An air sampling pump is a perfect
solution when you need to assess aerosol concentrations of
contaminants such as dust, gases or other vapors.
OXIDANTS and OZONE
Air pollutants formed by the action of sunlight on oxides of nitrogen and
hydrocarbons. Any of the chemicals which enter into oxidation reactions in the
presence of light or other radiant energy are also termed as photochemical oxidant.
Ozone, a natural constituent of the stratosphere formed by the photolysis of
molecular oxygen (O), can be transported by atmospheric circulation into the lower
atmosphere. Natural hydrocarbons including terpenes from trees and vegetation are
also subject to photochemical reactions producing oxidants. These two processes
are the natural sources of background ozone concentrations.Ozone and
peroxyacylnitrates are formed in the lower atmosphere by reactions between
oxides of N and an array of photochemically reactive hydrocarbons. The chemical
structure and reactivity of each organic hydrocarbon determines its importance in
the formation of oxidants. Motor vehicles, space heating, power plants, and
industrial processes are major sources of these oxidant precursors.
Sources of atmospheric particulate matter:Some particulates occur naturally,
originating from volcanoes, dust storms, forest and grassland fires, living
vegetation, and sea spray. Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels in
vehicles, power plants and various industrial processes also generate significant
amounts of particulates. Coal combustion in developing countries is the primary
method for heating homes and supplying energy. Because salt spray over the
oceans is the overwhelmingly most common form of particulate in the atmosphere,
anthropogenic aerosolsthose made by human activitiescurrently account for
about 10 percent of the total mass of aerosols in our atmosphere
Ambient air monitoring
Monitoring sites are classified into three types: peak, neighbourhood or
background. When selecting a monitoring site, you need to consider many
parameters, including, locality, terrain, meteorology, emission sources, possible
chemical or physical interference, availability of services and site security. Try to
co-locate meteorological monitoring equipment and ambient air monitoring
equipment unless site-representative meteorological data are available from
another nearby meteorological monitoring site.