Will polycentric cities cause more CO2 emissions? A case study of 232 Chinese cities

From 2000 to 2010 China experienced rapid economic development and urbanization. Many cities in economically developed areas have developed from a single-center status to polycentricity. In this study, we used exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) to identify the population centers, which identified 232 cities in China as having urban centers. COMP was used to represent urban agglomeration, and POLYD (representing how far is the city's sub-centers to the main center), POLYC (representing the number of a city's centers), and POLYP (representing the population distributed between the main center and the sub-centers) were used to indicate urban polycentricity. Night light data were used to determine the CO₂ emissions from various cities in China. A mixed model was used to study the impact of urban aggregation and polycentric data on the CO₂ emission efficiency in 2000 and 2010. The study found that cities with higher compactness were distributed in coastal areas, and the cities with higher multicentricity were distributed in the Yangtze River Delta and Shandong Province. The more compact the city was, the less conducive it was to improving CO₂ emission efficiency. Polycentric development of the city was conducive to improving the CO₂ emission efficiency, but the number of urban centers had no significant relationship with the CO₂ emission efficiency. Our research showed that the compactness and multicentricity of the city had an impact on the CO₂ emission efficiency and provided some planning suggestions for the low carbon development of the city.     

Ozone pollution characteristics and sensitivity analysis using an observation-based model in Nanjing, Yangtze River Delta Region of China

Ground-level ozone (O₃) has become a critical pollutant impeding air quality improvement in Yangtze River Delta region of China. In this study, we present O₃ pollution characteristics based on one-year online measurements during 2016 at an urban site in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province. Then, the sensitivity of O₃ to its precursors during 2 O₃ pollution episodes in August was analyzed using a box model based on observation (OBM). The relative incremental reactivity (RIR) of hydrocarbons was larger than other precursors, suggesting that hydrocarbons played the dominant role in O₃ formation. The RIR values for NO_X ranged from –0.41%/% to 0.19%/%. The O₃ sensitivity was also analyzed based on relationship of simulated O₃ production rates with reductions of VOC and NO_X derived from scenario analyses. Simulation results illustrate that O₃ formation was between VOCs-limited and transition regime. Xylenes and light alkenes were found to be key species in O₃ formation according to RIR values, and their sources were determined using the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model. Paints and solvent use was the largest contributor to xylenes (54%), while petrochemical industry was the most important source to propene (82%). Discussions on VOCs and NO_X reduction schemes suggest that the 5% O₃ control goal can be achieved by reducing VOCs by 20%. To obtain 10% O₃ control goal, VOCs need to be reduced by 30% with VOCs/NO_X larger than 3:1.     

Investigation to meet China II emission legislation for marine diesel engine with diesel methanol compound combustion technology

In order to reduce the pollutant emission and alleviate the pressure of petroleum resources shortage and greenhouse gas emission at the same time, the use of clean and renewable alternative fuel for marine engines is a promising option. In this study, a marine diesel engine, which was modified to run in diesel methanol compound combustion (DMCC) mode, was investigated. After the diesel injection parameters were calibrated, and combined with a sample after-treatment device DOC (diesel oxidation catalyst), the engine could meet the requirements of China II legislation. The overall MSP (methanol substitute percent) reached 54.1%. The value of each pollutant emission was much lower than that in China II emission legislation, and there was almost no methanol and formaldehyde emissions. When methanol was injected into the inlet manifold, the intake air temperature decreased a lot, as well as the exhaust gas temperature, which were beneficial to increase engine thermal efficiency and improve engine room environment. Compared with the engine running in pure diesel mode, when the engine ran in diesel/methanol dual fuel mode, the combustion phase was advanced, and the combustion duration became shorter. Therefore, the engine thermal efficiency increased, and fuel consumption decreased significantly.     

Photodegradation of Hexafluoropropylene Oxide Trimer Acid under UV Irradiation

As a novel alternative to traditional perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), hexafluoroproplyene oxide trimer acid (HFPO-TA) has been detected worldwide in surface water. Moreover, recent researches have demonstrated that HFPO-TA has stronger bioaccumulation potential and higher hepatotoxicity than PFOA. To treat these contaminants e.g. PFOA and PFOS, some photochemical techniques by adding exogenous substances had been reported. However, there is still no report for the behavior of HFPO-TA itself under direct UV irradiation. The current study investigated the photo-transformation of HFPO-TA under UV irradiation in aqueous solution. After 72 hr photoreaction, 75% degradation ratio and 25% defluorination ratio were achieved under ambient condition. Reducing active species, i.e., hydrated electrons and active hydrogen atoms, generated from water splitting played dominant roles in degradation of HFPO-TA, which was confirmed by different effects of reaction atmospheres and quenching experiments. A possible degradation pathway was proposed based on the products identification and theoretical calculations. In general, HFPO-TA would be transformed into shorter-chain PFASs, including hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA), perfluoropropionic acid (PFA) and trifluoroacetate (TFA). This research provides basic information for HFPO-TA photodegradation process and is essential to develop novel remediation techniques for HFPO-TA and other alternatives with similar structures.     

Concentrations and chemical compositions of PM10 during hazy and non-hazy days in Beijing

In order to study the concentrations of major components,characteristics and comparison in hazy and non-hazy days of PM_(10) in Beijing,aerosol samples were collected at urban site in Beijing from December 29,2014 to January 22,2015.Heavy metals like Zn,Pb,Mn,Cu,As,V,Cr and Cd were deeply studied considering their toxic effects on human being;nine water-soluble inorganic ions(SO_4~(2-),NO_3~-,NH_4~+,Na~+,K~+,Cl~-,Ca~(2+) and Mg~(2+)) and carbon fractions(OC and EC) were also analyzed.The concentrations of heavy metals were 1.03–1.98 times higher in hazy days than those in non-hazy days,mainly due to biomass burning and coal burning.The trends in total heavy metals concentrations were basically consistent with the trends in PM concentrations except for two obvious periods(12.29–12.30;1.14–1.15);but when air masses accumulated locally or around Beijing,trends in PM concentrations and heavy metals were opposite.The proportion for NO_3~-/SO_4~(2-) indicated that mobile sources such as automobiles were important reasons for haze in Beijing.Correlation between OC and EC during non-hazy days was strong(R~2= 0.95) but it was low(R~2= 0.67) during hazy days,and large variations for OC/EC values occurred in hazy days.The calculated mass concentration of SOC is 2.58 μg/m~3,which only accounted for 10.1% of the OC concentration.When air masses from the far north-west,they decreased PM concentration in Beijing and they were relatively clean;however,those from the near east,south-east and south of the mainland increased PM concentration and they were dirty.     

华北地区沙尘天气垂直气溶胶直接辐射强迫

利用CALIOP数据和SBDART（Santa Barbara DISORT Atmospheric Radiative Transfer）辐射传输模式研究了2013~2016年华北地区8d沙尘天气气溶胶及其直接辐射强迫垂直分布特征,分析了气溶胶垂直分布和光学特性对直接辐射强迫的影响.结果表明,气溶胶集中分布在地表及以上3km范围,其中纯净沙尘型和污染沙尘型气溶胶位于上层,污染大陆型气溶胶和烟雾位于下层.大气层顶、地表和大气层的日均气溶胶直接辐射强迫分别是-38.41~-88.44,-74.03~-225.86,9.06~137.42W/m².0~8km高度范围气溶胶直接辐射强迫是负值,且随着高度的增加绝对值逐渐减小.气溶胶垂直分布对大气层顶、地表和大气层的直接辐射强迫影响较小,但对直接辐射强迫垂直分布影响较大,由气溶胶廓线差异造成的同一高度层气溶胶直接辐射强迫最大差值能达到31.18W/m².气溶胶光学厚度和单次散射反照率对直接辐射强迫影响明显.消光能力相同时,吸收性气溶胶对短波太阳光的衰减作用大于散射性气溶胶,后向散射比例大的气溶胶大于后向散射比例小的气溶胶.     

Green innovation efficiency across China’s 30 provinces: estimate,comparison, and convergence

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change - Considering government and market failure of environmental regulation to combat increasing GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions, green innovation...     

南京八卦洲农用地表层土壤重金属分布特征及风险评价

为查明南京八卦洲土壤重金属污染物类型及其影响范围,于2017年12月在洲内采集了471个表层土壤样品,测定了pH及As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Hg、Ni、Pb、Zn等8种重金属元素浓度,采用单因子指数法、内梅罗综合指数法和潜在生态危害指数法进行了污染风险评价。研究结果表明:As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Hg、Ni、Pb和Zn平均浓度分别为10.66、0.32、86.74、43.25、0.10、40.34、33.50和108.33 mg·kg-1,除As、Hg元素外,其余6种元素均超过南京市背景值,出现大范围的富集;Cd元素为研究区主要污染物,绝大部分为Ⅱ级轻微污染,均分布于八卦洲服务区附近的中、酸性土覆盖区,需做好安全利用措施。从全区来看研究区大部分农用地土壤处于安全生产级别,仅有少部分区域处于Ⅱ级和Ⅲ级风险水平,总体上潜在生态危害较低。