Driving factors of ship-induced nitrogen dioxide concentrations over coastal seas of China: Implications for ship emission management

Yang Zhang; Runzhi Li; Shanshan Fu; Meiyu Shi; Zimin Han; Yan Zhang; Jihong Chen

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.123894

Driving factors of ship-induced nitrogen dioxide concentrations over coastal seas of China: Implications for ship emission management

J Environ Manage. 2024 Dec 30:373:123894. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.123894. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Yang Zhang¹, Runzhi Li², Shanshan Fu², Meiyu Shi², Zimin Han³, Yan Zhang⁴, Jihong Chen⁵

Affiliations

¹ College of Transport and Communications, Shanghai Maritime University, Shanghai 201306, China; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention (LAP3), National Observations and Research Station for Wetland Ecosystems of the Yangtze Estuary, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
² College of Transport and Communications, Shanghai Maritime University, Shanghai 201306, China.
³ Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention (LAP3), National Observations and Research Station for Wetland Ecosystems of the Yangtze Estuary, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China; MOE laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Shanghai institute for energy and carbon neutrality strategy, IRDR ICoE on Risk Interconnectivity and Governance on Weather/Climate Extremes Impact and Public Health, Fudan University, 200433,Shanghai,China.
⁴ Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention (LAP3), National Observations and Research Station for Wetland Ecosystems of the Yangtze Estuary, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China; MOE laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Shanghai institute for energy and carbon neutrality strategy, IRDR ICoE on Risk Interconnectivity and Governance on Weather/Climate Extremes Impact and Public Health, Fudan University, 200433,Shanghai,China. Electronic address: [email protected].
⁵ College of Management, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518073, China; Center for Marine Development,Macau University of Science and Technology, Macao, 999078, China; Shenzhen International Maritime Institute, Shenzhen 518081, China. Electronic address: [email protected].

PMID: 39740464
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.123894

Abstract

Ships generate large amounts of air pollutants, including nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) that profoundly impacts air quality and poses serious threats to human health. It is crucial to understand the dynamics and drivers of ship-induced NO₂ concentrations in China to support the prevention and control of fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and ozone (O₃) pollution. This study built Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) to reveal the nonlinear effects of meteorological factors and ship emissions on ship-induced NO₂ concentrations based on the Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) satellite data, AIS based emission model and meteorological data. A detrend analysis technique was applied to eliminate the NO₂ background influenced by land-based emissions, leaving NO₂ signals affected by shipping activities from 2019 to 2021 and within 200 nautical miles from the coastline of China. The detrended NO₂ Vertical Column Density (VCD) exhibits a U-shaped distribution, with high values found in winter and low values in summer. The NO₂ signals along major ship tracks and around primary port clusters are visible, with the measured NO₂ downwind of its source in winter. The nonlinear effects of meteorological factors and ship emissions on ship-induced NO₂ concentrations over three major shipping routes and two primary port clusters were explored. For every 10% increase in the monthly shipping emission, the detrended monthly NO₂ VCD rises by 0.05%-1.53% in different regions, demonstrating the regional heterogeneity in the driving forces of ship-induced NO₂ concentrations. The creation of site-specific and stricter emission reduction strategies is proposed for ship emission management. The results of this study can potentially offer a scientific foundation for air pollution prevention and control in the coastal areas of China.

Keywords: Coastal seas; Detrend analysis; Driving factors; Nitrogen dioxide; POMINO-TROPOMI; Spatiotemporal variations.