Scholarly record

THE ROLE OF NO2 IN OZONE FORMATION CHEMISTRY IN THE POLLUTED URBAN TROPOSPHERE

Spiru Paraschiv

Abstract

Ozone and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) are atmospheric pollutants with known associations for adverse effects on human health. In the stratosphere, ozone molecules play an important role by absorbing ultraviolet radiation from the Sun and protecting the Earth from dangerous rays. But in the troposphere, close to ground level, ozone molecules are atmospheric pollutants, threatening human health and becoming greenhouse gases contributing to climate change. Unlike most air pollutants, tropospheric ozone is not emitted directly into the air but is formed by the interaction of sunlight, especially ultraviolet light, with the hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides that are emitted by cars and combustion plants. The main aim of this paper is to evaluate the levels and variation of ground-level ozone and NO2 concentration in a polluted industrial city. The levels of these pollutants will be analyzed in the urban area for three different types of measurement sites (urban background, suburban background and industrial) and for different measurement periods throughout the year. The average ozone concentration for all measurements was statistically significantly higher at the urban background monitoring station (144 ?g / m3).

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