A posetic based assessment of atmospheric VOCs

The assessment of a series of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) based on partial order methodology is reported using available data from six sites in Yokohama, Japan as an exemplary case. The individual VOCs are mutually ranked according to their importance, the ranking being made both based on the recorded concentration and the concentrations adjusted for the possibility of the single VOCs to exhibit respiratory toxicity. The relative importance of the single sites is disclosed to verify the overall most problematic area from an air pollution point of view. The concentration profiles for the six sites are scrutinized for possible ‘peculiar’ profiles. As air pollution data typically are associated with significant uncertainty the possible effects of data noise/uncertainty is addressed