Monitoring Ambient Air 2018 Development in Air Quality - Current Issues and New Technologies Tuesday 11th & Wednesday 12th December 2018 Royal Society of Chemistry, Burlington House, London ABSTRACT We spend a significant proportion of our time travelling, often during weekday peak travel periods commuting to and from work or places of study. This travel coincides with peak concentrations of pollutants. The traffic-related air pollutants particle number (PN) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) are of interest as exposure has been found to both cause and exacerbate cardiovascular and respiratory conditions in all age groups. This study simultaneously measured the exposure to PN using fast response (1Hz) portable condensation particle counters of commuters (walk, cycle, car, bus) travelling from the same residential location to the University of Leeds campus in the morning, and returning in the evening peak. All journeys started at the same time. The car (electric) was also equipped with fast response NO2 analysers (CAPS) measuring in-cabin and ambient concentrations. The cyclist consistently had the lowest cumulative exposure, in part due to its shorter journey time as they could pass queues using on-carriageway cycle lanes. Whilst the walking and cycling commuters were exposed to the highest short-term peaks in PN, they only resided in these polluted micro-environments for short periods. The highest concentrations of PN and NO2 in the car cabin were observed in queuing traffic. An air exchange model applied to the car measurements, confirmed the un-impeded flow of NO2 into the cabin. Only a strategy of sealing the cabin (re-circulation setting) when in queuing traffic could lower exposure. Levels of PN and NO2 in the cabin were well correlated, confirming their categorisation as traffic-related air pollutants.

1. Exposure to the traffic-related air
pollutants particle number and NO2
when commuting by modes: Walk, Cycle,
Car and Bus.
#LeedsLivingLab
Dr James TATE
Marie GODWARD 1
Institute for Transport Studies (ITS)
Duncan MOUNSOR
Enviro Technology Services Ltd.
Email: j.e.tate@its.leeds.ac.uk
Twitter: drjamestate
Monitoring Ambient Air 2018
Development in Air Quality - Current Issues and New Technologies
Tuesday 11th & Wednesday 12th December 2018
Royal Society of Chemistry, Burlington House, London

2. AIR POLLUTION
Transport & Health
Adapted from: Health Effects Institute. 2003. Assessing Health Impact of Air Quality Regulations: Concepts & Methods. HEI Comm 11 Sept 2003
DEVELOPING
INTERESTS
CORE RESEARCH INTERESTS
Vehicle emission remote sensing, Linking traffic & emission models,
Clean Air Zones, Electric Vehicles etc.

3. BACKGROUND
#LeedsLivingLab
http://sustainability.leeds.ac.uk/the-living-lab/airquality/
https://cemac.leeds.ac.uk/living-lab/
CORE TEAM:
Cat Scott (SEE)
Jim McQuaid (SEE)
Kirsty Pringle (SEE)
Thom Cooper (Sustainability services)
& myself
ParticleNumber
Monthlyexposuremeasurements
usingTSI3007CPCs(0.01to>1.0µm)

4. BACKGROUND
Commuters’ Exposure to Air Pollution
http://sustainability.leeds.ac.uk/the-living-lab/airquality/
BBC Look North 20th June 2018 & BBC The Weathershow (radio) with Paul @Hudsonweather

5. MATERIALS
Commuters’ Exposure to Air Pollution
Instrumentation WALK, CYCLE & BUS:
• 3 portable CPCs (TSI3007) & Smartphones (position | Strava App)
Instrumentation CAR / VAN:
• Enviro Tech “Smogmobile”
• Nissan E-NV200 electric van
• 1 portable CPC & Smartphone to measure driver exposure (in-cabin)
• 2 fast NO2 CAPS (Cavity Attenuated Phase Shift2) Teledyne T500U analysers to
simultaneously measure ambient and in-cabin concentrations
NO2
[INT]
NO2 [EXT]
CPC

6. METHOD
Commuters’ Exposure to Air Pollution
SIMULTANEOUS
JOURNEYS A660
AM → TO campus
PM → FROM campus
• WALK
• CYCLE
• BUS
• CAR / VAN
June Tuesday 12th,
Wednesday 13th and
Thursday 14th, 2018
CYCLE 2018-06-13 08:21:22

7. METHOD
Commuters’ Exposure to Air Pollution
SIMULTANEOUS
JOURNEYS A660
AM → TO campus
PM → FROM campus
• WALK
• CYCLE
• BUS
• CAR / VAN
June Tuesday 12th,
Wednesday 13th and
Thursday 14th, 2018
CYCLE 2018-06-13 08:21:22

8. RESULTS
Cyclists’ Exposure to Particles

9. RESULTS
Cyclists’ Exposure to Particles

10. RESULTS
Cyclists’ Exposure to Particles

11. RESULTS
Cyclists’ Exposure to Particles

12. RESULTS
Walkers’ Exposure to Particles

13. RESULTS
Bus passengers’ Exposure to Particles

14. RESULTS
Car / Van drivers’ Exposure to Particles

15. RESULTS
Commuters’ Exposure to Particles

16. RESULTS
Commuters’ Exposure to Particles4
GREEN ROUTE ROAD ROUTE
SIMULTANEOUS JOURNEYS AM → TO campus | PM → FROM campus
• WALK ‘GREEN’ & ‘ROAD’
• CYCLE ‘GREEN’ & ‘ROAD’
June Tuesday 19th, Wednesday 20th and Thursday 30th, 2018

17. Commuting from Headingley to University of Leeds Campus AM (08:30 12/06/2018)
RESULTS
Car / Van drivers’ Exposure to NO2

18. Commuting from Headingley to University of Leeds Campus AM (08:30 12/06/2018)
RESULTS
Car / Van drivers’ Exposure to NO2

19. REFERENCES
1 Godward, M. 2018. Personal Exposure to Air Quality Whilst Commuting to
Campus: Comparing Particle Number Concentration Exposure When Walking,
Cycling and in Car and Bus Cabins. Institute for Transport Studies, University of
Leeds, MSc dissertation, September 2018.
2 Kebabian, P., Herndon, S., Freedman, A. 2005. Detection of Nitrogen Dioxide by
Cavity Attenuated Phase Shift Spectroscopy. Anal. Chem., 2005, 77 (2), pp 724–
728. DOI: 10.1021/ac048715yInstrumentation
3 Nicolò, A., Massaroni,C., Passfield, L. 2017. Respiratory Frequency during Exercise:
The Neglected Physiological Measure. Front Physiol., 2017, 8(922). DOI:
10.3389/fphys.2017.00922
4 Wu, H. 2018. Exposure to air quality whilst commuting to campus: comparing
levels of air pollution when walking and cycling on urban and green route. Institute
for Transport Studies, University of Leeds, MSc dissertation, September 2018.

20. Exposure to the traffic-related air
pollutants particle number and NO2
when commuting by modes: Walk, Cycle,
Car and Bus.
#LeedsLivingLab
Dr James TATE
Marie GODWARD 1
Institute for Transport Studies (ITS)
Duncan MOUNSOR
Enviro Technology Services Ltd.
Email: j.e.tate@its.leeds.ac.uk
Twitter: drjamestate
Monitoring Ambient Air 2018
Development in Air Quality - Current Issues and New Technologies
Tuesday 11th & Wednesday 12th December 2018
Royal Society of Chemistry, Burlington House, London