Person:
Birmili, Wolfram

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1969
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Birmili
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Wolfram
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Gerade angezeigt 1 - 3 von 3
  • Veröffentlichung
    Variability of black carbon mass concentrations, sub-micrometer particle number concentrations and size distributions: results of the German Ultrafine Aerosol Network ranging from city street to high alpine locations
    (2019) Sun, Junying; Birmili, Wolfram; Gerwig, Holger; Hermann, Markus; Ries, Ludwig; Schwerin, Andreas; Sohmer, Ralf; Meinhardt, Frank; Wirtz, Klaus
    This work reports the first statistical analysis of multi-annual data on tropospheric aerosols from the German Ultrafine Aerosol Network (GUAN). Compared to other networks worldwide, GUAN with 17 measurement locations has the most sites equipped with particle number size distribution (PNSD) and equivalent black carbon (eBC) instruments and the most site categories in Germany ranging from city street/roadside to High Alpine. As we know, the variations of eBC and particle number concentration (PNC) are influenced by several factors such as source, transformation, transport and deposition. The dominant controlling factor for different pollutant parameters might be varied, leading to the different spatio-temporal variations among the measured parameters. Currently, a study of spatio-temporal variations of PNSD and eBC considering the influences of both site categories and spatial scale is still missing. Based on the multi-site dataset of GUAN, the goal of this study is to investigate how pollutant parameters may interfere with spatial characteristics and site categories. © 2019 The Authors
  • Veröffentlichung
    Spatial Characterization of Black Carbon Mass Concentration in the Atmosphere of a Southeast Asian Megacity: An Air Quality Case Study for Metro Manila, Philippines
    (2018) Alas, Honey Dawn; Müller, Thomas; Birmili, Wolfram
    Black carbon (BC) particles have gathered worldwide attention due to their impacts on climate and adverse health effects on humans in heavily polluted environments. Such is the case in megacities of developing and emerging countries in Southeast Asia, in which rapid urbanization, vehicles of obsolete technology, outdated air quality legislations, and crumbling infrastructure lead to poor air quality. However, since measurements of BC are generally not mandatory, its spatial and temporal characteristics, especially in developing megacities, are poorly understood. To raise awareness on the urgency of monitoring and mitigating the air quality crises in megacities, we present the results of the first intensive characterization experiment in Metro Manila, Philippines, focusing on the spatial and diurnal variability of equivalent BC (eBC). The average mass concentration of eBC at the urban background station (UBS) was 7.0 - 4.8 ng m'3 while at roadside (RS), hourly concentrations reached maximum values of 138 ng m'3, levels that are significantly higher than in European cities. At RS, the diurnal cycles of eBC mass concentration were connected most strongly with traffic dynamics and street configuration, while a notable influence of planetary boundary layer evolution was observed in the UBS. Results of mobile measurements conducted multiple times along two fixed routes showed high spatial variability ranging from 3-80 ng m'3 within a 500-m radius. Alarmingly, the highest concentrations were found in the most crowded areas where people spend more than eight hours a day. Quelle: http://www.aaqr.org
  • Veröffentlichung
    Respiratory tract deposition of inhaled roadside ultrafine refractory particles in a polluted megacity of South-East Asia
    (2019) Kecorius, Simonas; Birmili, Wolfram; Madueno, Leizel; Löndahl, Jakob
    Recent studies demonstrate that Black Carbon (BC) pollution in economically developing megacities remain higher than the values, which the World Health Organization considers to be safe. Despite the scientific evidence of the degrees of BC exposure, there is still a lack of understanding on how the severe levels of BC pollution affect human health in these regions. We consider information on the respiratory tract deposition dose (DD) of BC to be essential in understanding the link between personal exposure to air pollutants and corresponding health effects. In this work, we combine data on fine and ultrafine refractory particle number concentrations (BC proxy), and activity patterns to derive the respiratory tract deposited amounts of BC particles for the population of the highly polluted metropolitan area of Manila, Philippines. We calculated the total DD of refractory particles based on three metrics: refractory particle number, surface area, and mass concentrations. The calculated DD of total refractory particle number in Metro Manila was found to be 1.6 to 17 times higher than average values reported from Europe and the U.S. In the case of Manila, ultrafine particles smaller than 100 nm accounted for more than 90% of the total deposited refractory particle dose in terms of particle number. This work is a first attempt to quantitatively evaluate the DD of refractory particles and raise awareness in assessing pollution-related health effects in developing megacities. We demonstrate that the majority of the population may be highly affected by BC pollution, which is known to have negative health outcomes if no actions are taken to mitigate its emission. For the governments of such metropolitan areas, we suggest to revise currently existing environmental legislation, raise public awareness, and to establish supplementary monitoring of black carbon in parallel to already existing PM10 and PM2.5 measures. © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.