Effects of the Motor Vehicle Control Program On Hydrocarbon Concentrations in The Central Los Angeles Atmosphere

The body of information presented in this paper is directed to those individuals concerned with the effect of the motor vehicle control program on ambient hydrocarbon concentrations in a metropolitan area during peak traffic hours. The data used in this study are from gas chromatographic analyses of air samples taken in 1963-65, before implementation of the exhaust control program for new motor vehicles, and in 1971 and 1973, after several years’ application of this program. A brief history of the motor vehicle program in California together with emission standards for hydrocarbons are discussed and certain automobile-related hydrocarbons are identified and characterized. Frequency distributions were constructed for total hydrocarbons, non-methane hydrocarbons, methane, acetylene, and isopentane for 1963-65, 1971, and 1973 and the standard deviation (1 sigma) concentration limits are discussed for each of the subgroups mentioned above. The average concentration and relative percent comparisons for methane, ethane, n-butane, isopentane, C₃+ paraffin, eth-ene, propene, C₄ +olefin, acetylene, benzene, and toluene are shown and discussed in detail. These studies: 1) show hydrocarbon emissions from motor vehicles were reduced 47.6% during this time period; 2) indicate selective reduction of compounds; and 3) reveal a 51.8% reduction in the 1973 ambient total hydrocarbon concentration since 1963-65.     

Odor Control In Los Angeles County

Abstract

Concentrations of 38 gas-phase organic air toxics were measured over a 2-yr period at four different sites in and around Pittsburgh, PA, to investigate spatial variations in health risks from chronic exposure. The sites were chosen to represent different exposure regimes: a downtown site with substantial mobile source emissions; two residential sites adjacent to one of the most heavily industrialized zones in Pittsburgh; and a regional background site. Lifetime cancer risks and non-cancer hazard quotients were estimated using a traditional and interactive risk models. Although study average concentrations of specific air toxics varied by as a much as a factor of 26 between the sites, the additive cancer risks of the gas-phase organic air toxics varied by less than a factor of 2, ranging from 6.1 × 10^-5 to 9.5 × 10^-5. The modest variation in risks reflects the fact that two regionally distributed toxics, formalde-hyde and carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄), contributed more than half of the cancer risk at all four sites. Benzene contributed substantial cancer risks at all sites, whereas trichloroethene and 1,4-dichlorobenzene only contributed substantial cancer risks at the downtown site. Only acrolein posed a non-cancer risk. Diesel particulate matter is estimated to pose a much greater cancer risk in Pittsburgh than other classes of air toxics including gas-phase organic, metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and coke oven emissions. Health risks of air toxics in Pittsburgh are comparable with those in other urban areas in the United States.     

Control of Asphaltic Concrete Plants in Los Angeles County

Characteristics of maximum short-term ground level concentrations from an elevated point source, namely, the effective plume height, the critical wind speed, the distance to the point of maximum concentration, and the maximum concentration, are derived from the gaussian plume model. Both phases of plume development—before and after it has reached its final height—are considered. The plume rise treatment includes both thermal buoyancy and momentum effects. Certain limitations on critical wind speed are discussed. The dispersion model whose basis is established in this paper should be especially useful in applications where on site meteorological data are unavailable.     

Gas-Particle Distribution Factors for Organic and Other Pollutants in the Los Angeles Atmosphere

The distribution of organic pollutants between the gas and particu-late phases was measured for 6 days Including one with the highest ozone level observed in Pasadena In 1973 (7/25). Gas phase pollutants were monitored continuously while particulates were sampled over a one hour interval by filtration. The filters were extracted using a polar and a non-polar solvent; particulate organic carbon was determined using a carbon analyzer, and chemical analysis carried out by fractionation, gas chromatography, infrared, and CHON analysis.

The organic carbon fraction (OCF) was always large, up to 43% of the total particulates (TP). Most of the organics were oxygenated compounds of photochemical origin. There was a linear relation between O₃, OCF, and the infrared carbonyl band intensities of the extracts. Hourly variations of OCF and TP are discussed with respect to the gas phase pollutants and conversion processes.

Although secondary pollutant concentrations were found in the order: organics > nitrates > sulfates, nitrates were more efficient than organics in visibility degradation, based on a statistical evaluation of the data. The secondary aerosol contribution varied with O₃, accounting for up to 95% of TP when the O₃ peaked. The unusual nitrate peak observed for 7/25 is discussed with the atmospheric chemistry of other nitrogen compounds.

We define an organic carbon distribution factor: f_c = particulate organic carbon (POC, μg/m³C)/[POC + gas phase reactive hydrocarbons (μg/m³C)]. The gas-particle distribution factors for organics (f_c), nitrates (f_N) and sulfates (f_s) are in inverse order of their aerosol concentrations: f_c < f_N < f_s . The measured f_c are low: average 2–3%, highest value 6% for 7/25, and correspond to a conversion rate ≤2% hour^?1. Ambient f_c are much lower than f_c measured for certain specific hydrocarbon precursors.     

Radiological Program of the Los Angeles County Air Pollution Control District

Abstract

One technology Geld tested under the SITE demonstration program was stabilization-solidification. The HAZCON process was one of those tested. It treats hazardous wastes, consisting of both inorganic and organic contaminants, by mixing it with portland cement, water and a proprietary additive called Chloranan in a modified cement mixer to produce a concrete mass. In evaluating the technology during the demonstration, two major criteria were investigated by using existing laboratory tests. These criteria were mobility of the contaminants before and after treatment and the long-term effect on mobility, and durability of the solidified masses. The former criteria was evaluated using various leaching tests, primarily the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) and permeability. The durability criteria was determined from weathering tests, wet-dry and freezethaw, unconfined compressive strength, microstructural analyses and sampling the prepared blocks from the demonstration twice at 9-month intervals. This paper describes the results of the field sampling performed 9 and 18 months after the initial field demonstration and relates it to the results obtained during the demonstration.

According to the data, little or no change in the chemical and physical properties of the blocks occurred. The technology is capable of immobilizing heavy metals. The organics were not immobilized and the treated material appears quite durable.     

Lead Concentrations in Detroit,New York,and Los Angeles Air

Lead concentrations in air were measured at 12 sites in Detroit, New York and Los Angeles as part of a program to relate automobile emissions and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons in air. The information on lead is reported separately because of the current interest in lead as an air pollutant. Sampling was conducted by means of a large “absolute” filter and equipment contained in a step-van truck. A portion of the filter was macerated in nitric acid and the lead determined spectrographically. The combined annual average lead concentration for four sites in metropolitan Los Angeles was approximately 40% higher than the combined averages of either the five sites in metropolitan New York or the three sites in metropolitan Detroit. Concentrations ranged from 0.4 ug/M³ at Santa Monica, to 18.4 ug/M³ at a Los Angeles Freeway Interchange. Concentrations were generally highest in freeway areas, intermediate in commercial areas, and lowest in residential areas. They were about 40% higher in daytime than at night. Average lead concentrations were highest during autumn in New York and winter in Los Angeles reflecting an inverse relationship with wind speed. Correlation coefficients between lead and carbon monoxide, at all sites, were statistically non-zero with 99% confidence and varied from 0.75 to 0.96. Lead concentrations in this study were higher than concentrations reported by others for Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles, presumably because sampling in this study was closer to traffic. However, concentrations in this study were lower than in-traffic concentrations given in the literature.     

Fluorocarbons in the Los Angeles Basin

Ambient air concentrations of fluorocarbon 11 (fluorotrichloromethane) and fluoro-carbon 12 (dichlorodifluoromethane) have been measured using a gas chro-matograph equipped with a pulsed, electron capture detector. Air samples taken on a moderately smoggy day in July 1970, at several locations near Los Angeles gave average readings of fluorocarbon 12, 0.7 ppb and fluorocarbon 11, 0.56 ppb. These readings were contrasted with those taken in early February 1973 when the air was clear and marked with turbulence due to several seasonal rain storms. The readings of both fluorocarbon 1 1 and 12 averaged about 25% less during clear weather than those taken during moderate smog. The effects of weather conditions on the concentration were also dramatically pointed out by the February samples, in that as much as a tenfold change in concentrations of both fluorocarbons from location to location and from day to day at the same location was observed. A concentration versus altitude study clearly revealed that fluorocarbons are trapped by an inversion layer. Examination of air samples taken in the vicinity of factories known to be users of fairly large quantities of fluorocarbons revealed in part how large users contribute to the atmospheric concentrations of fluorocarbons. A comparison of fluorocarbon levels in homes and public buildings with ambient outside air levels revealed that the concentrations in some homes and buildings may be as much as several thousand times as high as levels in outside air. Inside the homes and public buildings, levels were as high as one-half of a part per million. Long term photolysis studies in simulated sunlight of both fluorocarbons 11 and 12 in ambient air samples and in air samples with 1 ppm of hydrocarbon and 1 ppm of nitrogen oxides revealed that the two fluorocarbons are photochemically stable even when photolyzed for several weeks.     

Cyclic Trends in Los Angeles Fine Participates

Noontime visibilities in downtown Los Angeles, averaged over the smog season of June through November, show two cycles of general deterioration and improvement. The improvement since 1962 is confirmed by available high volume filter data and conditions in 1974/75 are at least as good as at anytime since observations were begun in 1933. The decrease in frequency of “rule 57” days suggests that the improvement of the last decade and perhaps the cyclic variation of the past 40 years has been primarily of meteorological origin.     

Weekday-Weekend Pollutant Studies of the Los Angeles Basin

Pollutant data from the Los Angeles Basin were analyzed for weekday-weekend differences for the smog months of June through September 1972 and 1973. The pollutants investigated were oxidant, NO, NO₂, total hydrocarbons (HC), CO, and particulates. In order to maintain the diurnal variation, the concentration percentiles were calculated for each weekday and weekend hour.     

History of Efforts at Incineration in the Los Angeles Area

The history of incineration in Los Angeles from 1943 to the present is reviewed as representative of all southern California areas.     

Urban nonpoint source pollution buildup and washoff models for simulating storm runoff quality in the Los Angeles County

Many urban nonpoint source pollution models utilize pollutant buildup and washoff functions to simulate storm runoff quality of urban catchments. In this paper, two urban pollutant washoff load models are derived using pollutant buildup and washoff functions. The first model assumes that there is no residual pollutant after a storm event while the second one assumes that there is always residual pollutant after each storm event. The developed models are calibrated and verified with observed data from an urban catchment in the Los Angeles County. The application results show that the developed model with consideration of residual pollutant is more capable of simulating nonpoint source pollution from urban storm runoff than that without consideration of residual pollutant. For the study area, residual pollutant should be considered in pollutant buildup and washoff functions for simulating urban nonpoint source pollution when the total runoff volume is less than 30 mm.     

Particulate matter modeling in the Los Angeles basin using SAQM-AERO

The SARMAP air quality model, enhanced with aerosol modeling capability, and its associated components were developed to understand causes of ozone (O3) and particulate matter exceedances in the San Joaquin Valley of California. In order for this modeling system to gain increasing acceptance and use in guiding air quality management, it is important to assess how transportable this modeling system is across geographic domains. We describe the first application of the modeling system outside the "home" domain for which it was developed and evaluated. We have chosen the August 27-28, 1987, intensive monitoring period of the Southern California Air Quality Study to evaluate the performance of the modeling system and to assess its sensitivity to emission control options. The predicted surface concentrations of O3 and other gas-phase species were spatially and temporally correlated with measured data. The fractional normalized absolute error was 0.32 to 0.36 for O3, and somewhat larger for other species. The fractional normalized bias for O3 on August 27 and 28, 1987, was 0.02 to 0.04. The simulated PM2.5 mass and constituent species concentrations reproduced the magnitude and variability of the observed daytime concentrations at most locations; however, nighttime PM2.5 concentrations were overpredicted by the model. The model's response to emission control options was consistent with other models of the same genre.     

Oxidant and precursor trends in the metropolitan Los Angeles region

This paper describes recent historical trends in oxidant and precursors in the Los Angeles region. Control strategies and basinwide emission trends for nitrogen oxides and reactive hydrocarbons are documented year by year from 1965 to 1974. Trends in the geographic distribution of emissions are illustrated by computing net percentage emission changes over the decade for individual counties. The changes in emissions are compared with changes in ambient precursor concentrations and oxidant concentrations. We find that many of the changes in monitored air quality can be explained by trends in both total emissions and the spatial distribution of emissions.