Mobile Air Quality Studies (MAQS)-an international project

Abstract

Due to an increasing awareness of the potential hazardousness of air pollutants, new laws, rules and guidelines have recently been implemented globally. In this respect, numerous studies have addressed traffic-related exposure to particulate matter using stationary technology so far. By contrast, only few studies used the advanced technology of mobile exposure analysis. The Mobile Air Quality Study (MAQS) addresses the issue of air pollutant exposure by combining advanced high-granularity spatial-temporal analysis with vehicle-mounted, person-mounted and roadside sensors. The MAQS-platform will be used by international collaborators in order 1) to assess air pollutant exposure in relation to road structure, 2) to assess air pollutant exposure in relation to traffic density, 3) to assess air pollutant exposure in relation to weather conditions, 4) to compare exposure within vehicles between front and back seat (children) positions, and 5) to evaluate "traffic zone"-exposure in relation to non-"traffic zone"-exposure.Primarily, the MAQS-platform will focus on particulate matter. With the establishment of advanced mobile analysis tools, it is planed to extend the analysis to other pollutants including NO2, SO2, nanoparticles and ozone.

Figure 1

MAQS-vehicle sensing modules. Varible positions of sensors with regard to positions within the vehicle (front or back seats) and sensor position height (adults or children height).

Figure 2

Schematic illustration of MAQS sensing module. The module consists of a supply unit and an analysis unit. In the analysis unit, particulate matter analyzer, gas analyzer (i.e. CO2, NO2, CO) and temperature, humidity, anemometer sensors are placed. An ultramobile PC unit integrates the data.