Vanessa Silveira Barreto Carvalho

Air quality forecasting system for Southeastern Brazil

Southeastern Brazil, the most populous and developed region of the country, faces various environmental problems associated with the growth of its population in urban areas. It is the most industrialized area in the country, comprising the metropolitan areas of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, and other major cities. Air quality is a major concern, because the reported concentrations of certain regulated pollutants, typically ozone and fine particulate, have exceeded national standards. Due to the difficulty in taking measurements over many different areas, air quality modeling is a useful tool to estimate air pollutant concentrations. For southeastern Brazil, air quality modeling has been performed mostly with the Brazilian Regional Atmospheric Modeling System with Simplified Photochemical Module and the Weather Research and Forecast with Chemistry models. One of the main objectives was to study the evolution of air quality associated with improved vehicle emission factors in urban areas, the impact of climate change on air quality, and the relationship between pollutant concentrations and health. Knowledge of mobile source emission factors has been continuously expanded by in-tunnel measurements and dynamometer protocols, which provide accurate data as inputs to photochemical air quality models. The spatial distribution of the mobile source emissions was constructed based on open access data related to the streets and traffic distribution. The mobile emission module was combined to the chemistry modeling and this implementation can be an example to be applied to other places that do not have a spatial distribution of this kind of source. Forecasts of pollutant concentrations can inform public policies, including those addressing the effects of pollutants on health of the general population, and studies of the impacts of using different fuels and implementation of emissions regulations programs.

AVALIAÇÃO DA INFLUÊNCIA DE CONDIÇÕES METEOROLÓGICAS NA OCORRÊNCIA E MANUTENÇÃO DE UM EPISÓDIO PROLONGADO COM ALTAS CONCENTRAÇÕES DE OZÔNIO SOBRE A REGIÃO METROPOLITANA DE SÃO PAULO

In the Metropolitan Area of Sao Paulo, air quality monitoring network often register ozone concentration values higher than those established by Brazilian legislation. In some occasions, weather conditions favorable to ozone formation allow the occurrence of high concentration values for several consecutive days in the area. The influence of meteorological conditions on the air pollution episode registered between February 24 and March 05, 2003 was assessed through numerical simulations with the SPM-BRAMS model. Observational studies show that the occurrence of calm winds, especially during the night and morning, favor the formation of high ozone concentration values over the region. The penetration time and the influence of the sea breeze are essential for the transport of ozone and its precursors. These conditions were well simulated by the model. For the most critical days, when several monitoring stations recorded the occurrence of violations to the ozone National Air Quality Standard, the model simulated properly the atmospheric conditions needed for the maintenance of high ozone concentration values, without any artificial procedure during the integrations.

Análise sinótica e numérica de um VCAN no Nordeste do Brasil

Os Vortices Ciclonicos de Altos Niveis (VCANs) sao sistemas de baixa pressao, com centro frio e circulacao ciclonica, que se formam em altos niveis da atmosfera. Na regiao Nordeste do Brasil e cercanias, esse sistema e um dos responsaveis por periodos chuvosos ou de estiagens dependendo de qual setor do vortice que esta atuando sobre uma determinada regiao. O presente trabalho tem como objetivo a analise sinotica e numerica do ciclo de vida de um VCAN que ocorreu entre os dias 31 de outubro e 7 de novembro de 2015 contribuindo para condicoes secas sobre grande parte do Nordeste do Brasil. Com relacao ao estudo numerico, o objetivo e verificar se o modelo Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) consegue reproduzir o ciclo de vida do VCAN. Entre os resultados tem-se que o VCAN se formou sobre o oceano Atlântico Sul Tropical, embebido num cavado corrente abaixo da Alta da Bolivia, e migrou para oeste, onde inibiu a ocorrencia de precipitacao sob seu nucleo, ou seja, sobre a regiao Nordeste do Brasil. O WRF simulou, de forma similar a reanalise ERA-Interim, o deslocamento do VCAN, mas com algumas diferencas na intensidade do sistema, que foi medida atraves da vorticidade relativa ciclonica.

Numerical simulation of the dispersion of hydrogen sulphide emitted by a UASB reactor for domestic sewage treatment

The anaerobic treatment of wastewaters can produce a large concentration of hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S), an odorant, toxic and corrosive substance. Control methods for eliminating H 2 S often require high implementation and operation costs and therefore are not used. Thus, suitable planning of wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) installation can help to prevent adverse impacts and potential problems for nearby communities. Mathematical models of atmospheric dispersion can be applied to verify the pollutant range and support the choice of the most appropriate place for installing a WWTP. Thus, the aim of this work was to analyze the dispersion of H 2 S from an anaerobic unit of wastewater treatment located in a rural district of the city of Itajuba (MG), Brasil. For this, a Gaussian model AERMOD was applied using actual pollutant emission rate data in the UASB reactor, as well as meteorological and geophysical information (topography and land use). Using simulations, it was found that the odor plume was oriented by relief and concentrated near the treatment unit, limiting the impact to the rural district. The wind had also direct influence on the direction of H 2 S for the first period. However, the same trend was not found in the second study period. Thus, it was found that the analysis of meteorological characteristics (especially the predominant wind direction) and geophysics in the region and the application of mathematical models can assist in choosing the most suitable location for the installation of a WWTP.

The numeric-operational weather forecast system for the southern region of the Minas Gerais state: comparisons with observed data

Numeric-Operational Weather Forecast System for the Southern Region of the Minas Gerais State (SiNOPT). The outputs from the operational daily runs were compared to observational data from several weather stations located at the South of the Minas Gerais State, during January 2015. The results evince a good quality in the simulations for air temperature (T2) and relative humidity (RH2) at 2 meters height, once the correlation coefficients can reach up to 0.95 in the daily forecasts with 72 hours of analysis. The results for accumulated monthly precipitation were also very satisfactory, with small errors for all evaluated sites, around 15%. Furthermore, a specific case of the performance of the Humidity Convergence Zone (ZCOU) was investigated in the period. According to the thermodynamic and mesoscale conditions of the atmosphere in the runs, it can be inferred the occurrence of rainfall particularly when the precipitation amounts were not precisely solved in the model. Thus, it can be concluded that the SiNOPT is effective and fulfils its role as an operational auxiliary tool to local forecasters and also as a source of meteorological information to the community in

Evaluation of weather conditions in days with high particulate matter concentrations in the Metropolitan Area of Rio de Janeiro

ABSTRACT In the Metropolitan Area of Rio de Janeiro, high levels of particulate matter concentrations (PM 10 ) with violations of the limits established by CONAMA Resolution 03/90 are routinely recorded. Analyzing data recorded between 1998 and 2008, 146 days with concentrations above these values were identified. In those days, it was possible to verify the influence of South Atlantic Subtropical Anticyclone, the lack of precipitation and temperature inversions in the lower troposphere, which confirm the strong relationship between high PM 10 concentration and the atmospheric conditions in region. Keywords: particulate matter; air quality. INTRODUCAO A atmosfera e composta por diversos gases e particulas que podem sofrer variacao em termos de concentracao. A presenca de substâncias que nao fazem parte da constituicao natural da atmosfera caracteriza um problema de poluicao do ar. As fontes dessas substâncias podem ser tanto antropogenicas, como as provenientes de emissoes industriais e veiculares, quanto tambem fontes naturais, como as decorrentes de erupcoes vulcânicas (BOUBELIn the Metropolitan Area of Rio de Janeiro, high levels of particulate matter concentrations (PM10) with violations of the limits established by CONAMA Resolution 03/90 are routinely recorded. Analyzing data recorded between 1998 and 2008, 146 days with concentrations above these values were identified. In those days, it was possible to verify the influence of South Atlantic Subtropical Anticyclone, the lack of precipitation and temperature inversions in the lower troposphere, which confirm the strong relationship between high PM10 concentration and the atmospheric conditions in region.

DISTRIBUIÇÃO DE TAMANHO DO MATERIAL PARTICULADO NA ATMOSFERA DE SÃO PAULO NO FINAL DO INVERNO DE 2008

During an intensive campaign occurred in Sao Paulo in August2008, mass and composition size distribution of particulate matter datawith different sizes were collected in order to evaluate the behavior ofthis pollutant in during a winter time. During this season occur someparticulate matter and some other pollutants Air Quality NationalStandards violation due to favorable meteological conditions. The resultsshowed that most mass particles were found in the smaller fractions ofthe particulate with higher concentrations of sulfur, sodium, silicon andpotassium. The relevance of this data is related to the potential hazardousimpact of the smaller particles to human health.

PARTICULATE MATTER CONCENTRATION FORECAST OVER THE METROPOLITAN AREA OF SÃO PAULO

Em virtude dos grandes males causados a saude pela poluicao nosgrandes centros urbanos, a utilizacao de modelos meteorologicos acopladosaos modelos quimicos, resultando em modelos de previsao da qualidade doar, tem aumentado significativamente nos ultimos anos. Exemplos dessetipo de utilizacao sao os modelos WRF-CHEM, utilizado em varios paisesdo mundo, e SPM-BRAMS, recentemente desenvolvido por pesquisadoresda Universidade de Sao Paulo e do INPE e utilizado operacionalmente nolaboratorio MASTER do IAG-USP. Embora o modelo seja utilizado para aprevisao das concentracoes dos principais poluentes monitorados na regiao, neste trabalho sao apresentadas comparacoes entre as concentracoesde material particulado fino (PM2.5) previstas e aquelas derivadas das observacoes na rede da CETESB. O PM2.5 esta relacionado aos efeitos deleteriosa saude e esta sendo estudado o estabelecimento de um padrao de qualidadedo ar para esse poluente. Alem da questao da relacao com impactosnegativos a saude, ha tambem os impactos ao clima, ja que as particulasfinas estao relacionadas com a formacao de precipitacao e extincao da radiacao.

AVALIAÇÃO DOS RESULTADOS DE CONCENTRAÇÃO DE OZÔNIO TROPOSFÉRICO SIMULADOS PELO MODELO SPM-BRAMS SOBRE A RMSP

Avaliacao dos resultados de concentracao de ozoniotroposferico simulados pelo modeloSPM-BRAMS sobre a RMSP