Project Description

Busair

Description

New technical improvements in monitoring equipment are producing increasingly sophisticated instruments that are becoming more portable, making it practical for an individual to monitor a range of different air quality parameters (PM sizes and number, various gases) simultaneously while moving through the city. This opens up the possibility of recording much more accurately the actual real-time dose of air pollutants inhaled daily by regular commuters. Our starting hypothesis is that the quality of the air we breathe while commuting by public bus will vary greatly according on the type of fuel and post treatment (e.g. SCRT filters) technology, route chosen, location inside the bus and infiltration of outdoor air, the latter mostly related to the age of the bus and seasonal variations influencing ventilation and air conditioning operating conditions.

Objectives

The primary objective of this project is to significantly improve our understanding of what controls air quality inside public buses, identifying the effect of each variable to allow us to elaborate a protocol of best practice regarding air quality while commuting in this transport mode.

Contact: Teresa Moreno