Title: Source-sector NOx emissions analysis with sub-kilometer scale airborne observations in Houston during TRACER-AQ
Institution(s) Represented: The George Washington University (PI: Daniel Goldberg), Ramboll (Co-PI: Greg Yarwood)
Lead PI: Daniel Goldberg
AQRP Project Manager: Elena McDonald-Buller
TCEQ Project Liaison: Sushil Gautam
Awarded Amount: $248,146.60
Abstract
Nitrogen oxide (NOX) emissions are a critical participant in ozone formation. Many North American cities already have NOX-limited ozone formation during the warm season (Jin et al., 2020; Jung et al., 2022), and the remaining cities should have primarily NOX-limited conditions in the coming years (Koplitz et al., 2021). Further reducing ozone production rates within cities will therefore require improved quantification of NOX emissions. One major limitation of our current observing network is the inability to accurately quantify NOX emissions on a sector-by-sector basis in a timely fashion, with the exception of continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS) on electricity generating units. Many non-road sources of NOX emissions, such as industrial or construction emissions, have large uncertainties (Zawacki et al., 2018).
In this project we will use fine spatial resolution nitrogen dioxide (NO2) information (250 × 560 m2) from the Geostationary Coastal and air pollution events Airborne Simulator (GCAS) instrument (Janz et al., 2019; Nowlan et al., 2018), available during the September 2021 NASA/TCEQ Tracking Aerosol Convection ExpeRiment - Air Quality (TRACER-AQ) field campaign, to better understand the fine-scale structure of NOX emissions in the Houston metropolitan area including a sector-by-sector analysis.
Complementing the airborne observations, the Comprehensive Air Quality Model with Extensions (CAMx) will be run with a fine spatial resolution (444 × 444 m2) using the 2019 TCEQ emissions inventory. The model output will then be compared to data from the GCAS and the Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) in order to identify gaps in our understanding of NOX emissions. We will compare/contrast NO2 concentrations near large CEMS and non-CEMS point sources, major highways, large population centers, airports, railyards, and commercial marine vessels to determine whether the magnitude of the NOX emissions agree between the inventory and observations. We will also use GCAS observations to estimate NOX emissions directly from individual point sources or quasi-points sources (e.g., airports, petrochemical complexes, etc.). To maximize the value of the airborne measurements, we will use a Generalized Additive Model (GAM) to estimate the contributions from different NOX emission sectors that best matches the airborne retrievals.
This work maps to at least four Research Priority Areas of the Texas Air Quality Research Program (AQRP), as shown in the table below. This project will combine aircraft and satellite observations with high resolution models, to provide actionable information about TCEQ's 2019 Emissions
Inventory for NOX. These results will provide a new perspective for aiding in decision-making for improving ozone air quality in the region.
Work Plan: projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\SOW 22-023 FINAL.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Aug 2022.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Sept 2022.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Oct 2022.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Nov 2022.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Dec 2022.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Jan 2023.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Feb 2023.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Mar 2023.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Apr 2023.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR May 2023.pdf
Technical Report(s): projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\22-023 MTR Jun 2023.pdf
Technical Report(s): MTR July 2023
QAPP: projectinfoFY22_23\22-023\QAPP 22-023 FINAL.pdf
Final Report
