• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.217-225
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• 2016

The purpose of the study was to initially investigate the concentration patterns of $PM_1$, $PM_{2.5}$ and $PM_{10}$ in the Seoul subway lines, and then to figure out the PM behaviors of internal and external sources inside subway tunnels. The PMs were monitored by a light scattering real-time monitor during winter (Jan. 8-26 in 2015) and summer (July 2-Aug. 7 in 2015) in tunnel air, in passenger cabin air, and in the ambient air. The daily average $PM_{10}$, $PM_{2.5}$, and $PM_1$ concentrations on these object lines were $101.3{\pm}38.4$, $81.5{\pm}30.2$, and $59.7{\pm}19.9{\mu}g/m^3$, respectively. On an average, the PM concentration was about 1.2 times higher in winter than in summer and about 1.5 times higher in underground tunnel sections than in ground sections. In this study, we also calculated extensively the average PM mass ratios for $PM_{2.5}/PM_{10}$, $PM_1/PM_{10}$, and $PM_1/PM_{2.5}$; for example, the range of $PM_{2.5}/PM_{10}$ ratio in tunnel air was 0.82-0.86 in underground tunnel air, while that was 0.48-0.68 in outdoor ground air. The ratio was much higher in tunnel air than in outdoor air and was always higher in summer than in winter in case of outdoor air. It seemed from the results that the in/out air quality as well as a proper amount of subway ventilation must be significant influence factors in terms of fine PM management and control for the tunnel air quality improvement.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.6-15
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• 2024

Background: People's activities have been restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes in activity patterns may lead to a decrease in fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) concentrations. Additionally, the level of population exposure to PM_2.5 may be changed. Objectives: This study aimed to analyze the impact of population movement and meteorological factors on the distribution of PM_2.5 concentrations before and after the outbreak of COVID-19. Methods: The study area was Guro-gu in Seoul. The research period was selected as January to March 2020, a period of significant population movement changes caused by COVID-19. The evaluation of the dynamic population was conducted by calculating the absolute difference in population numbers between consecutive hours and comparing them to determine the daily average. Ambient PM_2.5 concentrations were estimated for each grid using ordinary kriging in Python. For the population exposure assessment, the population-weighted average concentration was calculated by determining the indoor to outdoor population for each grid and applying the indoor to outdoor ratio to the ambient PM_2.5 concentration. To assess the factors influencing changes in the ambient PM_2.5 concentration, a statistical analysis was conducted, incorporating population mobility and meteorological factors. Results: Through statistical analysis, the correlation between ambient PM_2.5 concentration and population movement was positive on both weekends and weekdays (r=0.71, r=0.266). The results confirmed that most of the relationships were positive, suggesting that a decrease in human activity can lead to a decrease in PM_2.5 concentrations. In addition, when population-weighted concentration averages were calculated and the exposure level of the population group was compared before and after the COVID-19 outbreak, the proportion of people exceeding the air quality standard decreased by approximately 15.5%. Conclusions: Human activities can impact ambient concentrations of PM_2.5, potentially altering the levels of PM_2.5 exposure in the population.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.24 no.7
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• pp.875-882
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• 2015

In 2013, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) concluded that outdoor air pollution is carcinogenic to humans, with the particulate matter component of air pollution most closely associated with sufficient evidence of increased cancer incidence by exposure to particulate matter component of air pollution. Motor vehicles are one of a major emission sources of fine particle ($PM_{2.5}$) in urban areas. A large number of epidemiological studies have reported a positive association of morbidity or mortality with distance from the roadside. We conducted this study to assess the association of $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations measured at roadside hotspots with those at adjacent residential sites using real-time $PM_{2.5}$ monitors. We conducted real-time $PM_{2.5}$ measurements for rush hour periods (08:00~10:00 and 18:00~20:00) at 9 roadside air monitoring Hotspot sites in metropolitan Seoul over 3 weeks from October 1 to 21, 2013. Simultaneous measurements were conducted in residential sites within a 100 m radius from each roadside air monitoring site. A SidePak AM510 was used for the real-time $PM_{2.5}$ measurements. Medians of roadside $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations ranged from $9.8{\mu}g/m^3$ to $38.3{\mu}g/m^3$, while corresponding median values at adjacent residential sites ranged from $4.4{\mu}g/m^3$ to $37.3{\mu}g/m^3$. $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations of residential sites were 0.97 times of hotspot roadside sites. Distributions of $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations in roadside and residential areas were also very similar. Real-time $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations at residential sites, (100 m adjacent), showed similar levels to those at roadside sites. Increasing the distance between roadside and residential sites, if needed, should be considered to protect urban resident populations from $PM_{2.5}$ emitted by traffic related sources.

• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.21-30
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• 2001

Vehicles, especially diesel-using, are a major source of airborne particulate matter(PM), nitrogen dioxide($NO_2$) and so on in metropolitan cities such as Seoul. Therefore workers, who are mainly merchants, near roadside may be highly exposed to air pollutants from exhausted emissions of vehicles. This means that occupational type and location can affect the workers＇health by exposure to outdoor pollutions of ambient as well as indoor pollutions of working condition, respectively. In this study, we simultaneously measured the PM3.5 and $NO_2$concentrations in indoor and outdoor of shoes repair shops in Seoul, which were generally located at roadside in Korea. Shoes repairmen were highly exposed to PM3.5 and $NO_2$ both indoor and outdoor of repair shops comparing with other sub-population groups. High exposure to air pollutants for shoes repairmen was considered to be outdoor source from exhausted emission of vehicles and indoor source from working condition. The $PM3.5/NO_2$ concentration ratio was $1.17{\pm}$0.59 in roadside, of which ratio was higher 7han ratios of other studies. This result suggested that major air pollutant in Seoul was fine particle. Also, this PM3.5 to $NO_2$ ratio will be used in environmental exposure and risk assessment by estimation of PM3.5 concentration as measuring the only $NO_2$ concentration with small and accurate $NO_2$ passive sampler.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.274-288
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• 2018

Quantitative data of 50 non-polar organic compounds constituting $PM_{2.5}$ were continuously collected and analyzed from June 2016 to October 2017 (approximately 17 months) at Ichihara, one of the largest industrial areas in Japan. Target non-polar organic compounds including 21 species of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), 24 species of n-alkanes and 5 species of phthalate esters(PAEs) were simultaneously measured by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Basically, the average concentrations of the total PAHs, n-alkanes and PAEs in each season remained nearly level, and seasonal variations were little throughout the study period. These results suggest that the emission sources, which are not influenced by the seasons, are the dominant inputs for the target organic compounds. Diagnostic ratios of PAHs, assessment of n-alkane homologue distributions, carbon preference index, and the contribution of wax n-alkanes from plants were used to estimate source apportionments. These results indicate that anthropogenic sources were the main contributor for most PAHs and n-alkanes throughout the study period. The concentrations of PAEs selected in this study were low because emission amounts of these chemicals were little within the source areas of the sampling site. To our knowledge, this study is the first attempt to simultaneously measure a high number of non-polar organic compounds in $PM_{2.5}$ collected from the ambient air of Japan, and the resultant data will provide valuable data and information for environmental researchers.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.630-637
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• 2019

Objectives: This study was performed to evaluate the secular changes in indoor airborne dust or endotoxin levels in the dust from swine confinement buildings. Indoor levels were compared with the level at the exhaust outlet in order to examine the contribution potential of indoor dust to nearby ambient air dust. Methods: Comparisons were made on inhalable and respirable dust levels reported in 2002, 2012, and 2017 from 14, 10, and 36 swine fattening confinement buildings in Korea, respectively. This data was produced by the same research group. Levels of endotoxin adsorbed into inhalable or respirable dust were also compared. Samples of inhalable or respirable dust were collected indoors and at exhaust outlets from 17 swine fattening confinement buildings in 2019, and dust levels were compared between the indoor and the outlet. Results: The outlet inhalable dust level (0.111 mg/㎥) was approximately 19% of that from indoors, and the respirable dust level (0.033 mg/㎥) was approximately 74% of that from indoors. The outlet respirable dust levels were lower than the airborne fine dust levels in the towns where those farms are located. No significant difference was observed in the inhalable dust levels among the years examined, but the respirable dust level in 2017 (0.143 mg/㎥) was significantly lower than in 2002 (0.328 mg/㎥). The level of endotoxin in inhalable dust was significantly higher in 2017 (722 EU/㎥) than in both 2002 (75 EU/㎥) and 2012 (171 EU/㎥). Conclusion: Even though no apparent contribution from swine farm indoor dust to nearby ambient air dust was observed in terms of amount, a certain control strategy to reduce the production of airborne dust and endotoxin from swine farms is merited.

• Particle and aerosol research
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.49-59
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• 2020

Various devices have been developed to the measurement of particulate matter pollutants, and Optical Particle Counter (OPC) that can be easily and quickly measured is widely used lately. The measured value by OPC is converted to weight concentration using the correction factor (CF). The calculation of CF is very important to improve the reliability and accuracy of OPC. In this study, the CF calculation study of light scattering laser photometer (model 8533, TSI) was carried out to measure in the atmospheric environment using 2 gravimetric devices and 3 light scattering laser photometer devices. Regression analysis and Tukey tests were used to significance the test of measurement devices. Measurements were carried out twice. There was a comparative analysis of measurement data between light scattering laser photometer and gravimetric devices in 1st measurement, and then the Evaluation of PM2.5 concentration corrected by CF performed in 2nd measurement. As a result of the significance analysis between light scattering laser photometer and gravimetric devices, the correlation between the same method was high, but the correlation between different methods was low. CF was calculated as 0.4258 based on the measurement results, and it is a similar level to previous studies at home and abroad. It is expected that these results can be used as basic data in the future study for air quality measurement research using light scattering laser photometer. Also, in order to improve the accuracy of the measurement techniques and the development of technology in the atmospheric environment, CF calculation research should be conducted continuously.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.100-107
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• 2021

Along with an increase in the frequency of high-concentration fine particulate matter in Korea, interest and research on ammonia (NH₃) are actively increasing. It is obvious that agriculture has contributed significantly to NH₃ emissions. However, studies on the long-term effect of fertilizer use on the ambient NH₃ concentration of agricultural land are insufficient. Therefore, in this study, NH₃ concentration in the atmosphere of agricultural land was monitored for 11 months using a passive sampler. The average ambient NH₃ concentration during the total study period was 2.02 ㎍ m^-3 and it was found that the effect of fertilizer application on the ambient NH₃ concentration was greatest in the month immediately following fertilizer application (highest ambient NH₃ concentration as 11.36㎍ m^-3). After that, it was expected that the NH₃ volatilization was promoted by increases in summer temperature and the concentration in the atmosphere was expected to increase. However, high NH₃ concentrations in the atmosphere were not observed due to strong rainfall that lasted for a long period. After that, the ambient NH₃ concentration gradually decreased through autumn and winter. In summary, when studying the contribution of fertilizer to the rate of domestic NH₃ emissions, it is necessary to look intensively for at least one month immediately after fertilizer application, and weather information such as precipitation and no-rain days should be considered in the field study.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.642-655
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• 2013

In this study, semi-continuous measurements of $PM_{2.5}$ mass, organic and elemental carbon (OC and EC), black carbon (BC), and ionic species concentrations were made for the period of April 03~13, 2012, at a South Area Supersite at Gwangju. Possible sources causing the high concentrations of major chemical species in $PM_{2.5}$ observed during a haze episode were investigated. The measurement results, along with meteorological parameters, gaseous pollutants data, air mass back trajectory analyses and PSCF (potential source contribution function) results, were used to study the haze episode. Substantial enhancements of OC, EC, BC, $K^+$, $SO{_4}^{2-}$, $NO{_3}{^-}$, $NH{_4}{^+}$, and CO concentrations were closely associated with air masses coming from regions of forest fires in southeastern China, suggesting likely an impact of the forest fires. Also the PSCF maps for EC, OC, $SO{_4}^{2-}$, and $K^+$ demonstrate further that the long-range transport of smoke plumes of forest fires detected over the southeastern China could be a possible source of haze phenomena observed at the site. Another possible source leading to haze formation was likely from photochemistry of precursor gases such as volatile organic compounds, $SO_2$, and $NO_2$, resulting in accumulation of secondary organic aerosol, $SO{_4}^{2-}$ and $NO{_3}{^-}$. Throughout the episode, local wind directions were between 200 and $230^{\circ}C$, where two industrial areas are situated, with moderate wind speeds of 3~5 m/s, resulting in highly elevated concentration of $SO_2$ with a maximum of 15 ppb. The $SO{_4}^{2-}$ peak occurring in the afternoon hours coincided with maximum ambient temperature ($24^{\circ}C$) and ozone concentration (~100 ppb), and were driven by photochemistry of $SO_2$. As a result, the pattern of $SO{_4}^{2-}$ variations in relation to wind direction, $SO_2$ and $O_3$ concentrations, and the strong correlation between $SO_2$ and $SO{_4}^{2-}$ ($R^2=0.76$) suggests that in addition to the impact of smoke plumes from forest fires in the southeastern China, local $SO_2$ emissions were likely an important source of $SO{_4}^{2-}$ leading to haze formation at the site.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.44-49
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• 2011

Under the Enforcement Rules of the National Health Promotion Act, smoking areas in coffee shops in Korea should be divided off from other areas. The effect on indoor air quality of different division types for smoking areas was evaluated. Using real-time monitors, fine particulate matter <2.5 ${\mu}m$ in diameter ($PM_{2.5}$) concentrations were measured simultaneously in the smoking and non-smoking areas of 30 coffee shops in Seoul. Average $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations in smoking and non-smoking areas were 132 ${\mu}g/m^3$ and 52 ${\mu}g/m^3$, respectively; significantly different. Average $PM_{2.5}$ concentrations in non-smoking areas were 39 ${\mu}g/m^3$ in the glass-wall type and 64 ${\mu}g/m^3$ in the separate-floor type. These $PM_{2.5}$ levels were above the US national ambient air quality standard of 35 ${\mu}g/m^3$. Although indoor $PM_{2.5}$ levels in non-smoking areas were reduced by the division, the rates of reduction were not significantly different by division type. Our results demonstrated that $PM_{2.5}$ from smoking areas can infiltrate into non-smoking areas. Therefore, a complete indoor smoking ban in coffee shops is the only way to protect customers and workers in non-smoking areas.