UNIT 3: AIR QUALITY STANDARDS
AND MONITORING
Air Pollution and Control
7th Sem
Dr. Raghava Aditya
Indoor air pollution
It is the air pollution is created by the release of harmful
pollutants inside the buildings.
These can include fine particulate matter, carbon monoxide,
and various other toxins.
Indoor air pollution
Indoor air pollutants are sometimes more harmful for humans,
because of two reasons:
Humans have a prolonged exposure to these pollutants
There can be several sources of indoor air pollution and are
sometimes difficult to identify.
Since there is no dispersion or dilution indoors, the
concentration levels of the pollutants can be higher.
Common causes of indoor air pollution
Cooking and heating : In developing countries, liquid and solid
fuels such as kerosene, wood, coal, and dung are often burned
indoors for cooking and heating. These often emit a significant
amount of PM, CO, NOx and hydrocarbons.
Exposure to high levels of PM from indoor cooking stoves has links to
a variety of health problems, including respiratory infections,
asthma, heart disease, and cancer.
Common causes of indoor air pollution
Tobacco smoke: The smoke from cigarettes, cigars, and pipes is one
of the most common—and most dangerous—indoor air
pollutants. Tobacco smoke contains CO, hydrocarbons, PM and more
than 7,000 chemicals, including at least 70 that are carcinogenic
Secondhand tobacco smoke is another a major indoor air pollutant.
When inhaled, these chemicals can also cause chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease and other cardiovascular diseases that result in
heart attacks and other serious consequences such as cancer.
Common causes of indoor air pollution
Cleaning products: The chemicals in many cleaning products can pollute
indoor air. These chemical products release toxic fumes, which can be
harmful when inhaled. Many cleaning products contain volatile organic
compounds (VOCs), gases that can easily evaporate at room temperature.
When VOCs are released into the air, they can cause various short- and
long-term health effects, including headaches, nausea, and damage to the
liver, kidney, and central nervous system.
Building materials: Many of the building materials cause indoor air
pollution:
Asbestos, used as a fireproof, insulation and roof material emits asbestos dust,
fibers and hydrocarbons.
Adhesives and plywood are sources of hydrocarbon emissions, particularly
formaldehyde.
Paint contains harmful volatile compounds and metals like lead.
Carpets contain a lot of dust.
Substances like varnish, used for coating protecting wooden material emit
harmful hydrocarbons like pentachlorophenol.
Biological sources:
Sources can include bacteria, fungus, microbes and pets.
Microbes and mold grows in damp and humid environments and can
be found in a variety of places in the home, such as on walls, floors,
ceilings, and basements.
They can cause numerous health problems, including respiratory
infections, asthma, and allergies.
Air quality standards
An air quality standard defines the maximum amount of a
pollutant averaged over a specified period of time that can be
present in outdoor air without harming public health.
the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act was passed by
Parliament in 1981. With the goal of providing for the prevention,
control, and abatement of air pollution,
Air quality standards
Agencies responsible for air quality standard creation and monitoring
include :Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and several State
Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs).
All of these entities fall under the control of the Ministry of Environment
and Forest (MoEF).
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) are standards for air
quality that are set by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) that are
applicable all over the country.
Air quality standards
The NAAQS set by the CPCB are applicable to the whole country.
The CPCB draws this power from the Air (Prevention and Control of
Pollution) Act, 1981.
These standards are essential for the development of effective
management of ambient air quality.
The first ambient air quality standards were developed in 1982
pursuant to the Air Act.
Later, in 1994 and 1998, these standards were revised. The latest
revision to the NAAQS was done in 2009 and this is the latest
version being followed.
NAAQ
The current standards (2009) comprise 12 pollutants as
follows:
Particulate Matter 10 (PM10)
Particulate Matter 2.5 (PM2.5)
Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2)
Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)
Carbon Monoxide (CO)
Ozone (O3)
Ammonia (NH3)
Lead (Pb)
Benzene
Benzopyrene
Arsenic
Nickel
NAAQ
Air quality standards
Central Pollution Control Board is executing a nation-wide programme of
ambient air quality monitoring known as National Air Quality Monitoring
Programme (NAMP).
The network consists of 804 operating stations covering 344 cities/towns.
Under N.A.M.P., four air pollutants viz ., Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), Oxides of
Nitrogen as NO2, Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM /
PM10) and Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) have been identified for
regular monitoring at all the locations.
The monitoring of pollutants is carried out for 24 hours, with a frequency of
twice a week, to have one hundred and four (104) observations in a year.
AQI (Air quality index)
The National Air Quality Index (AQI) was launched in 2014 to
measure the air quality and rate it in six categories (ranging from
good to severe).
AQI is a measure used by government agencies to inform the people
how polluted the current air quality is or to forecast how polluted it
will become.
AQI (Air quality index)
AQI keeps a tab on 8 major air pollutants in the atmosphere namely,
Particulate Matter (PM10)
Particulate Matter (PM2.5)
Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2)
Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)
Carbon Monoxide (CO)
Ozone (O3)
Ammonia (NH3)
Lead (Pb)
AQI (air quality index)
National Air Quality Index was launched in 2014 to measure the air
quality. The higher the value of AQI, the more polluted and harmful
the air is. It is divided into six categories:
AQI for each pollutant
AQI for each pollutant
If multiple pollutants are monitored in the city, then the final AQI
category will be based on the value of the highest pollutant.
You can visit the website : [Link] to check the AQI of any city in
India.
Eg. In a city, the following pollutant measurements were taken (in μg/m3) over
24 hours.
PM2.5 = 75, PM10 = 120, NO2= 35, SO2 = 25
What is the AQI category for the city ?
Air quality monitoring
Air quality monitoring means the systematic measurement of ambient air
pollutants in order to be able to assess the exposure of people, animals,
plants etc. on the basis of standards and guidelines
It helps to understand the quality of air by pollutants and over a period
of time. It also gives trends and patterns about air quality whether it is
improving or degrading.
Factors for air quality monitoring
The sample collected must be representative of the pollutants in the
location
The volume of the sample must be large enough for accurate analysis
The duration of sampling should be sufficient to accurately monitor the
pollution levels.
Spot sampling: Used for short duration measurements like 30 mins.
Continuous sampling: Air is sampled continuously over 24 hours. This
is more accurate and is used in many studies by agencies.
Factors for air quality monitoring
The contaminants must not get modified during the collection process
(by chemical reaction etc. )
The monitoring device should be placed near locations where people
are exposed to the pollutant.
Meteorological data like wind speed, direction and precipitation
should also be monitored to see their effects on air quality.
Air quality monitoring techniques
1. Passive Monitoring (Diffusion tubes)
Diffusion tubes are small plastic tubes with a chemical inside and caps at
each end.
When air passes through the tube, a chemical change takes place in the
tube. This tells us how much pollutant (like NO) was in the air during the
monitoring period.
Diffusion tubes absorb a specific pollutant from the ambient air - no power
supply is needed
Diffusion tubes normally monitor for 2-4 weeks at a time
The tubes must be sent to a laboratory for analysis to see how much
pollution they have detected
Air quality monitoring techniques
Air quality monitoring techniques
2. Active (Semi Automatic) Sampling
An analyser pulls the ambient air through a filter or a tube filled
with a chemical for a set period of time e.g one day.
Active air sampling requires a pump to collect air samples. Using a
pump, it is possible to collect gases and vapors by pumping air
through a tube containing a bed of a sorbent (like silica gel or
charcoal).
The filters are then collected and sent to a laboratory for analysis to
see how much pollution they have detected
Air quality monitoring techniques
High volume air sampler:
These are devices used for sampling a large volume of air for 24
hours.
Used for measuring the concentration of PM in air.
The air is passed through a filter of known weight. The weight of the
filter is measured after 24 hours.
By dividing the weight of the pollutant collected by the volume of
air, the concentration of the PM is determined.
Air quality monitoring techniques
3. Automatic point monitoring
These are the most sophisticated and generally used by Govt
agencies.
Automatic analysers draw in ambient air, and measure the
concentration of the pollutant in the sampled air.
Automatic monitoring techniques are used for oxides of
nitrogen, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone and
particulate matter (PM 10 and PM2.5).
Air quality monitoring techniques
Ambient air is pulled through an analyzer which recognizes the
chosen gas and will calculate its concentration
Automatic sites monitor pollutants 24 hours a day
Data is sent from the site directly to the computer and it can be
seen instantly.
Air quality monitoring techniques
4. Optical sensor systems
These are portable monitoring tools that can continuously monitor a
range of pollutants.
The sensors are of low sensitivity and mostly suitable for identifying
hotspots at roadsides and near point sources.
A sensor and a beam of light sit at an angle to each other. As a
particle passes in front of the light, some light is reflected towards
the sensor.
It can measure the density of the pollutant particles.
Air quality monitoring techniques
If the air is moving at a consistent speed, the length of this pulse can
be used to estimate the particle’s diameter.
Data can be downloaded to a computer and analysed.
Air quality monitoring techniques
5. Satellite monitoring
These measure the pollution indirectly by measuring the difference in solar
radiation at the top of the atmosphere and the earth's surface.
If more aerosols, PM or gaseous pollutants are present in the atmosphere,
then the solar radiation will be absorbed or scattered more.
Its accuracy is dependent on local weather conditions.
Sattelite data is used along with ground based pollution monitoring systems
.
Satellite data has the advantage of covering a very large area.
It can also be used for comparison of less polluted versus more
polluted areas.
