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Review
. 2021 Jul;28(27):35564-35583.
doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-14462-9. Epub 2021 May 25.

Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on air quality: a study based on Air Quality Index

Sadhan Gope  1 , Subhojit Dawn  2 , Shreya Shree Das  3
Affiliations
Review

Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on air quality: a study based on Air Quality Index

Sadhan Gope et al. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2021 Jul.

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected economic activities all around the world. Though it took a huge amount of human breathes as well as increases unemployment, it puts a positive impression on the environment. To stop the speedy extend of this disease, the maximum Government has imposed a strict lockdown on their citizens which creates a constructive impact on the atmosphere. Air pollutant concentration has been investigated in this study to analyze the impact of lockdown on the environment. Based on the air pollutant concentration, Air Quality Index (AQI) is deliberated. The Air Quality Index indicates the most and least polluted cities in the world. A higher value of AQI represents the higher polluted city and a lesser value of Air Quality Index represents a less polluted city. The impact of lockdown on air quality has been studied in this work and it is observed that the air pollutant concentration has reduced in every city of the world during the lockdown period. It has been also detected that the PM2.5 and PM10 are the most affecting air concentrator which controls the air quality of all the selected places during and after lockdown.

Keywords: Air Quality Index (AQI); Carbon monoxide (CO); Ground-level ozone (O3); Nitrogen dioxide (NO2); Particle pollution; Sulphur dioxide (SO2).

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Boat traffic at Venice, Northern Italy, during April 2019 and April 2020
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Average PM2.5 concentration with and without lockdown
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Average PM10 concentration before and after lockdown
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Average O3 concentration with and without lockdown
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Average CO concentration with and without lockdown
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Average NO2 concentration with and without lockdown
Fig. 7
Fig. 7
Average SO2 concentration with and without lockdown
Fig. 8
Fig. 8
Air Quality Index with and without lockdown
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
Status of air quality in four metro cities of India with and without lockdown. (a) Status of air quality in Delhi with and without lockdown (b) Status of air quality in Kolkata with and without lockdown (c) Status of air quality in Mumbai with and without lockdown (d) Status of air quality in Bengaluru with and without lockdown
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
Status of air quality in four metro cities of India with and without lockdown. (a) Status of air quality in Delhi with and without lockdown (b) Status of air quality in Kolkata with and without lockdown (c) Status of air quality in Mumbai with and without lockdown (d) Status of air quality in Bengaluru with and without lockdown
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
Status of air quality in four metro cities of India with and without lockdown. (a) Status of air quality in Delhi with and without lockdown (b) Status of air quality in Kolkata with and without lockdown (c) Status of air quality in Mumbai with and without lockdown (d) Status of air quality in Bengaluru with and without lockdown
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
Status of air quality in four metro cities of India with and without lockdown. (a) Status of air quality in Delhi with and without lockdown (b) Status of air quality in Kolkata with and without lockdown (c) Status of air quality in Mumbai with and without lockdown (d) Status of air quality in Bengaluru with and without lockdown
Fig. 10
Fig. 10
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over Europe with and without lockdown
Fig. 11
Fig. 11
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over France with and without lockdown
Fig. 12
Fig. 12
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over Italy with and without lockdown
Fig. 13
Fig. 13
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over the northeast United States with and without lockdown
Fig. 14
Fig. 14
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over China with and without lockdown. (a) Mean tropospheric NO2 density in 2020 (b) NO2 tropospheric column (c) Comparison in mean tropospheric NO2 density in 2019 and 2020
Fig. 14
Fig. 14
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over China with and without lockdown. (a) Mean tropospheric NO2 density in 2020 (b) NO2 tropospheric column (c) Comparison in mean tropospheric NO2 density in 2019 and 2020
Fig. 15
Fig. 15
Nitrogen dioxide concentrations over major European cities with and without lockdown
Fig. 16
Fig. 16
Maps of sulphur dioxide concentrations over India in 2019 and 2020
Fig. 17
Fig. 17
Airborne particle levels plummet in Northern India
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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