arXiv subjects

Gabriele Curci

Publications and source records attributed to Gabriele Curci.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2015

Modelling air pollution abatement in deep street canyons by means of air scrubbers

Deep street canyons are characterized by weak ventilation and recirculation of air. In such environment, the exposure to particulate matter and other air pollutants is enhanced, with a consequent worsening of both safety and health. The main solution adopted by the international community is aimed at the reduction of the emissions. In this theoretical study, we test a new solution: the removal of air pollutants close to their sources by a network of Air Pollution Abatement (APA) devices. The APA technology depletes gaseous and particulate air pollutants by a portable and low-consuming scrubbing system, that mimics the processes of wet and dry deposition. We estimate the potential pollutant abatement efficacy of a single absorber by Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) method. The presence of the scrubber effectively creates an additional sink at the bottom of the canyon, accelerating its cleaning process by up to 70%, when an almost perfect scrubber (90% efficiency) is simulated. The efficacy of absorber is not proportional to its internal abatement efficiency, but it increases rapidly at low efficiencies, then tends to saturate. In the particular configuration of the canyon we choose (aspect ratio of 3) the upwind corner is the most favourable for the absorber application. In the downwind corner the maximum pollutant abatement is -24%, while in the upwind corner the maximum abatement is twice as much at -51%. The efficacy of the absorber increases much faster at low efficiencies: at 25% efficiency, the abatement is already about half that obtained with the 90% efficiency. These first results, suggest strategies for the real-world application of a network of absorbers, and motivates further theoretical study to better characterize the details of the air flow inside and around the absorber.

physics.soc-ph↗

arXiv2015

Analysis of a wet scrubber network in the air remediation of industrial workplaces: benefit for the city air quality

Industrial activities carried out in confined spaces are characterized by a very specific type of air pollution. The extended exposure to this kind of pollution is often highly harmful, resulting in dramatic effects both on health and safety aspects. The indoor industrial abatement systems, adopted to purify the air, are typically applied to the emission points. The processed air is subsequently emitted outside. In this study we present the experimental results of three-stage wet scrubber systems installed in the industrial workplace of a (i) fiberglass processing plant, where the highest exposure levels to volatile compounds are nowadays today monitored,and of a (ii) waste-to-energy plant, characterized by a very high particulate matter level. The adopted technology, to be used as complementing strategy,does not require special disposal procedures and the processed air is re-emitted in the same work environment for the benefit of the work operators. The operation of the scrubbers network during the working activities, in both the examined environments, has a) reduced the level of volatile compounds by about 40% and b) maintained the particulate matter concentration PM > 1 to a very low level. Industrial plants are disseminated in mega-cities and represent dangerous diffuse pollution emission sources. Remediation of highly polluted industrial plants inside our towns, especially for the conventionally untreated emissions, is of extreme benefit for the cities air quality.

physics.soc-ph↗

arXiv2014

Origin of atmospheric aerosols at the Pierre Auger Observatory using studies of air mass trajectories in South America

The Pierre Auger Observatory is making significant contributions towards understanding the nature and origin of ultra-high energy cosmic rays. One of its main challenges is the monitoring of the atmosphere, both in terms of its state variables and its optical properties. The aim of this work is to analyze aerosol optical depth $τ_{\rm a}(z)$ values measured from 2004 to 2012 at the observatory, which is located in a remote and relatively unstudied area of the Pampa Amarilla, Argentina. The aerosol optical depth is in average quite low - annual mean $τ_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.04$ - and shows a seasonal trend with a winter minimum - $τ_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.03$ -, and a summer maximum - $τ_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.06$ -, and an unexpected increase from August to September - $τ_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.055$). We computed backward trajectories for the years 2005 to 2012 to interpret the air mass origin. Winter nights with low aerosol concentrations show air masses originating from the Pacific Ocean. Average concentrations are affected by continental sources (wind-blown dust and urban pollution), while the peak observed in September and October could be linked to biomass burning in the northern part of Argentina or air pollution coming from surrounding urban areas.

astro-ph.IM↗