Open AccessHaze-day Trends from 2013 to 2020 and Analysis of Spatiotemporal Characteristics of a Haze Process in Ningbo, China
Author(s) -
Lijun Hu,
Aizhen Gao,
Huixiang Yang,
Zheng Zhang
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of physics. conference series
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.21
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1742-6596
pISSN - 1742-6588
DOI - 10.1088/1742-6596/2112/1/012009
Subject(s) - haze , environmental science , pollutant , air quality index , atmospheric sciences , relative humidity , climatology , china , seasonality , pollution , meteorology , air pollution , geography , chemistry , geology , ecology , statistics , mathematics , organic chemistry , archaeology , biology
Air quality in Ningbo continues to improve with a constant decrease in the PM 2.5 concentration. However, pollution levels occasionally increase during autumn and winter. To understand the regional and seasonal distributions and the interannual variation during haze days, we analyzed the haze monitoring data from 2013 to 2020 and the haze weather process during January 18–19, 2016. Our results showed a downward trend in the major pollutant concentrations. High PM 2.5 concentrations persist in certain areas of Ningbo during winter owing to seasonal haze conditions. However, the annual number of haze days has decreased between 2013 and 2020. Regional variations in pollutant concentrations appear mainly in winter, especially in December and January. The observed concentrations were higher in the north and west, and lower in the south and east. The haze process during January 18–19, 2016, occurred within a height of 0–1.5 km, with high PM 2.5 concentrations mainly occurring as small and spherical particles. A higher relative humidity, temperature drop, and stable weather assist in accumulating and sinking pollutants, which cause long-term effects and render diffusion difficult. Although recent national initiatives have been effective, the air quality in northern Ningbo requires further improvement during autumn and winter.