Research Project Details

Name: BAirQ - Better air quality for Beijing: An approcah based on mobility improvement
Abstract: The main tasks of the project BAirQ - Better air quality for Beijing: An approach based on mobility improvement, are:
i: Data collection: traffic flow and speed will be collected for some points of Beijing city. With this data, traffic and emissions hot spots will be identified. In addition, to characterize meteorology and the air quality levels, data from automatic meteorological and air quality stations will be also collected. In case of lack of data (meteorological, air quality and/or emissions), alternatives based on estimates as credible as possible will be developed.
ii: Data analysis: Statistical methods will be used to identify the correlation between events and variables. A detailed analysis on the location of the heaviest traffic points, and the emissions and air
quality levels recorded on those routes will be investigated.
iii: Emission and air quality modelling: Based on the data collected, an integrated land use modelling of emission and air quality to Beijing city will be defined. In case of lack of data for the entire city, the methodology will be applied to a pilot area. Tailpipe emission will be considered in this study (e.g. CO, NOx, HC, PM). To produce reliable results the model will be firstly calibrated and then validated using the data collected in the automatic stations.
iv: Scenarios: several traffic scenarios will be defined in order to assess their impact on air quality.
Financed by: Erasmus Mundus
Participating Institutions: Peking University, Universidade Fernando Pessoa
Researchers: Nelson Barros, Tânia Fontes