Exploring the Spatiotemporal Variation of Air Pollution Throughout the
Urban Landscape of Philadelphia, PA with Mobile Monitoring
Abstract
In this study, we implement a mobile monitoring methodology in order to
determine the spatiotemporal distribution of particulate matter (PM) and
black carbon (BC) in Philadelphia, PA, USA. Over the course of 12 days
between June 27, 2019 and July 29, 2019, we measured air pollution
concentrations across two replicated 150-mile long routes. Mean
concentrations for each pollutant were 11.25 ± 5.43 ug/m3 (PM1), 11.08 ±
6.25 ug/m3 (PM2.5), 15.57 ± 8.51 ug/m3 (PM10), and 1.27 ± 0.80 µg/m3
(BC). We find that finer PM size fractions (PM2.5 and smaller)
constitute approximately 71% of PM10. Air pollution hotspots across
three size fractions of PM (PM1, PM2.5, and PM10) and BC were present
throughout Philadelphia, but were most prevalent in the North Delaware,
River Wards, and North planning districts. A plurality of air pollution
hotspots found throughout the data collection period (30.19%) occurred
between the hours of 8:00 AM – 9:00 AM. Despite significant temporal
variation, pollutant concentrations, except for PM10, clustered
temporally with a separation before 12 PM. Our approach and findings
identify times and places where pollutant concentrations are highest,
which is integral to effective air pollution reduction in urban
environments.