1. Variation in Concentration and Sources of Black Carbon in a Megacity of China During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Author
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Meng Shan, Weijun Li, Dantong Liu, Bowen Liu, Congbo Song, Gongda Lu, Qi Yuan, Da Xu, Shengchen Xu, Lei Liu, Zongbo Shi, Xin Sun, Jian Zhang, Zhenhong Du, and Liang Xu
- Subjects
Atmospheric Science ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ,source ,Atmospheric Composition and Structure ,010502 geochemistry & geophysics ,Aethalometer ,Urban area ,black carbon ,01 natural sciences ,Oceanography: Biological and Chemical ,Paleoceanography ,Pandemic ,Research Letter ,Biomass burning ,China ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Aerosols ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,COVID‐19 lockdown ,Aerosols and Particles ,The COVID‐19 Pandemic: Linking Health, Society and Environment ,Research Letters ,Megacity ,Pollution: Urban and Regional ,Geophysics ,COVID-19 lockdown ,Environmental science ,General Earth and Planetary Sciences ,Physical geography ,Rural area - Abstract
Black carbon (BC) not only warms the atmosphere but also affects human health. The nationwide lockdown due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic led to a major reduction in human activity during the past 30 years. Here, the concentration of BC in the urban, urban‐industry, suburb, and rural areas of a megacity Hangzhou were monitored using a multiwavelength Aethalometer to estimate the impact of the COVID‐19 lockdown on BC emissions. The citywide BC decreased by 44% from 2.30 to 1.29 μg/m3 following the COVID‐19 lockdown period. The source apportionment based on the Aethalometer model shows that vehicle emission reduction responded to BC decline in the urban area and biomass burning in rural areas around the megacity had a regional contribution of BC. We highlight that the emission controls of vehicles in urban areas and biomass burning in rural areas should be more efficient in reducing BC in the megacity Hangzhou., Key Points BC concentrations during the COVID‐lockdown were reduced by 44% in a megacity of ChinaBC from fossil fuels has the largest reduction in urban area during the COVID‐lockdownVehicles and industrial activities are the major contributors of BC in the megacity, followed by and biomass burning
- Published
- 2020