CE558 - Air Pollution and its Mitigation

Effect of COVID lockdown on Air Quality of India (group C)

Urvashee Meena(b18032) Amit Kumar Jatav (b18005) Radha Singh(b18022)

Abstract
Covid-19 pandemic has adversely affected all the aspects of life in adverse manner; however, a
significant variation has been observed in the air quality, due to restricted human activities due to
the lockdown. Present study reports a comparison of air quality before and after lockdown in India.
It includes data from various parts of India.
Keywords Covid-19 . Particulate matter . NO2 . SO2 . CO . Ozone

Introduction Some people don’t have any symptoms at all.

COVID-19 stands for coronavirus disease
2019. COVID-19 is the disease caused by the
novel coronavirus, a family of viruses-some
of which cause disease in people and
animals-named for crownlike spikes on their
surfaces. The viruses can cause the common
cold or more severe diseases such as SARS
(severe acute respiratory syndrome), MERS
(Middle East respiratory syndrome) and
COVID-19, the latter of which first appeared
in late 2019.
The first infection was linked to a market in
Wuhan city of China. It's still unclear how
transmission unfolded, but there are several
theories.
“Some researchers believe that someone
bought contaminated meat at the market, ate
it, got sick and infected others. Others say the
virus originated in bats, spread to an
intermediary animal, and then to humans.
Some researchers say pangolins may have
been that intermediary host.”
Symptoms of coronavirus-
Key symptoms are fever, shortness of breath,
dry cough, nasal congestion and tiredness.
About 1 in 6 people becomes seriously ill and
develops difficulty breathing, according the
World Health Organization (WHO).
Government Measures
When people with COVID-19 bread the out
or cough, they expel tiny droplets that contain
the virus. These droplets inter in the mouth of
healthy person and causes infection. So for
this the Indian government began issuing
recommendations regarding social
distancing measures and also initiated travel
and entry restrictions.
On 22 March, the Government of India
announced complete lockdown in 82 districts
in 22 states and Union Territories of country
where confirmed cases were reported. Prime
Minister Narendra Modi announced a three-
week nationwide lockdown, starting March
25.Transport (Air services, Railways,
Roadways) facilities were stopped only
allowed in special cases. It was mandatory to
wear faced mask and use of sanitizers.
The Government Divided the entire nation
into three zones – Green Zone, Red Zone,
Orange Zone. Relaxations would be allowed
accordingly.
Red zone (Hotspots) – districts with high New Delhi before lockdown
doubling rate and high number of active Air quality in New Delhi was so bad that a
cases. public health emergency was declared in
Orange zone (Non-hotspots) – districts with November 2019, CNN reports.
fewer cases New Delhi's air is so polluted it can be seen
Green zone – districts without confirmed from space, according to USA Today.
cases or without new cases in last 21 days According to the World Economic Forum, air
pollution alone kills 1.25 million people in
IMPACTS OF LOCKDOWN- India annually.
According to Swiss firm IQAir, around half
of the world's 50 most polluted cities are in
India, with much of the blame going to the
sheer number of vehicles cramming
overcrowded streets. Lockdown
had immediate positive effect on air quality
in New Delhi, which is the world's most
polluted capital city. After lockdown New
Delhi's Air Quality Index was recorded at
around 93, which is considered moderate
(Air quality is considered to be good when
the number drops below 50). New Delhi's air
is regularly considered unhealthy, and AQI
averaged around 161 in March of last year,
according to IQAir. In financial capital
Mumbai, levels were at 90, versus an average
of around 153 in March 2019. India's toxic air
claimed 1.24 million lives in 2017, according
to a study published in Lancet Planetary
Health. The drop is mainly due to the huge
reduction in vehicular traffic. As a result,
skyscrapers usually shrouded in smog were
visible and some residents reported spotting
more stars than usual.
After Lockdown
According to the Washington Post, air
pollution in New Delhi dropped by almost
60% within just a few days of the beginning
of the lockdown.
CNN reports much lower levels of both
noxious microscopic particulate (PM 2.5) and
of nitrogen dioxide post-lockdown. In New
Delhi, the PM 2.5 and the harmful gas
nitrogen dioxide went down by 71% in a
single week.
In just a one week of lockdown, NASA saw
India's air pollution drop to a 20-year low.

New Delhi, India, on April 8, 2020
The India Gate war memorial of New Delhi, India, on April 8,
2020, after a 21-day nationwide lockdown.)
The impact on air quality of seven selected
cities of Rajasthan (Ajmer, Alwar,
Bhiwadi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota, and
Udaipur) before and after lockdown-
The data includes five criteria air pollutants:
(i) particular matter of size less than 2.5 μm
(PM2.5), (ii) particular matter of size less
than 10 μm (PM10), (iii) sulfur dioxide
(SO2), (iv) nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and (v)
ozone (O3)
Result& discussion
There is a significant decline in the
concentration of all the pollutants except
ozone (O3) in all the cities of Rajasthan under
examination. In the 1st phase of lockdown,
decrease in the concentration of the air
pollutant is more significant as compared to
next two phases. This can be due to the
relaxation given in the later phases of
lockdown. As showed in figs. there is no
destruction of the National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS) which are-
PM2.5 = 60 μg m−3, PM10 = 100 μg m−3,
SO2 = 80 μg m−3, NO2 = 80 μg m−3 founded
on 24-hr average and for O3= 100 μg m−3
founded on 8-hr average through the
lockdown period in these cities of Rajasthan.
Before the lockdown all criteria pollutants are
within the NAAQS limit before lockdown
period expect PM (in Jaipur, Jodhpur,
10
Bhiwadi and Ajmer with an average
concentrations being 105.256 μg m−3,
154.34 μg m−3, 178.54 μg m−3 , and 110.30
μg m−3 as represented in Figs.
Table shows the Percentage of change in the
criteria pollutants of selected cities in
Rajasthan, before and during lockdown
(average of the three phases of lockdown)
POLLUTANT O3
Presence of ozone in tropospheric layer is
considered as bad ozone because ground
level ozone is an air pollutant that is harmful to
breathe and it damages crops, trees and other
vegetation. Along with nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
and particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10),
tropospheric ozone is responsible for many of the
ill effects caused by outdoor air pollution.
Reduction in vehicle emissions during
lockdown led to a rise in ozone pollution.
Evidence has suggested that ozone could lead
to greater lung damage than NO2 at the same
concentration.
Ozone is formed by the photochemical
reaction between volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), so study
of these element is also necessary. With the
increase concentration of VOCs ozone
formation also increases. While increase in
NOx lead to an increase/decrease of O3
depending on the prevailing ratio between
VOCs and NOx.
To understand the variation of O3 during
lockdown first we should know the
fundamental chemistry of ozone with respect
to its parent species (i.e. NOx, VOCs, CO) in
presence of sunlight.
⌈O2⌉
VOC+OH → O2+H2O
⌈O2⌉
CO+OH → HO2+CO 2
HO2+NO→OH+NO2
NO2+hν→NO+O
O+O2+M→O3+M
If NO remains high as compared to NO , the 2
dissociation of O increases which Shows that
3
an increased NO/NO ratio reduces the ozone
2
concentration.
In India, the western state of Maharashtra has
the highest number of COVID-19 cases. Two
megacities in Maharashtra which are
Mumbai and Pune has highest COVID cases.
These two cities are very closely located but
have completely different geography as
Mumbai is a coastal city while Pune is not.
we investigate ozone and its precursor
pollutant concentrations in these two cities
and how it varies during the lockdown period.
As shown in figure between 15 to 17 march th th
there is increase in concentration of NO2,
VOC and CO. This may be due to the people
indulging in panic buying of daily essentials
and outstation people going back to their
home because of lockdown, results in
increase in emission in this short period of
time. After 17th March, concentrations of O3
and its precursors (NO2, VOCs, CO) started
to decline. On 24 and 29 march there is
th th
peaked in ozone concentration and VOC
peaked on 22 and 25 of march. Fossil fuel
nd th
combustion related to transport services is the
major source of NO2 as after lockdown
emission is decreased due to which its
concentration decreased sharply in both
cities. The level of VOC and CO remains
unaffected in Mumbai while in Pune it
decreased sharply.
Immediately after the lockdown, NO and 2
CO concentration decreased sharply, & a fall
in ozone amount from 38 to 20 ppb is
observed (between 17 march to 20 march)
th th
which is associated with a sharp increase in
the VOC/NO ratio. There after the ratio of
x this period NO2 and VOC declined. The
VOC/NO sharply declined due to which
x
ozone started to increase and showed first
peak in ozone on 24 of March & second
th
peak on 29th March. The variation of O3 on
those days is controlled by VOC/NOx
levels. After 29 March, the ozone level in
th
2020 was still higher than 2019, it decreases
as ratio of NO/NO2 increases along with
ration of VOC/NOx with variations in
between. So we can observed that the trend
in ozone is inversely proportional to VOC,
while the level of NO remains almost
x
constant during most of the lockdown period
after it gets saturated.
In Pune, there is no appreciable trend in O3
after the lockdown and looks almost similar
level as that of before lockdown. Just after
lockdown there is declination in O3
concentration 20ppb until 21 March, during
st
decrease in ozone come into view to be
related with increase in the NO/NO2 ratio
(0.8 to1) and a reduction in the VOC/NOx
ratio (from 0.05 to 0.03). After 28 March
th
there is no significant change in levels of
NO2 and VOC. Also the NO/NO2 ratio
doesn’t change significantly leads to
negligible variation in O3 concentration.
After 9 of April the ratio of both NO/NO2
th
and VOC/NOx started to increase and
cancelled out any impact in ozone due to
which it remains constant without any
considerable change till the end of the
lockdown.
For understanding the variation of pollutant
on hourly basis, the daily variation of O3,
CO, NO2 and VOC is shown in figure during
the normal period (20 February to 16th
th
March) and lockdown period (17th March to
14th April).
Diurnal variability of O , CO, NO , and VOC at
3 2
Mumbai and Pune during the two periods: normal
period and lockdown period
Association with meteorological
parameters-
The photochemical formation of ground-
level O is influenced by meteorological
3
parameters such as temperature, relative
humidity and wind speed. Higher
temperature increases the rate of
photochemical reaction of O3. The daily
temperature is lower before the lockdown and
after 15th March it rises. The relative
humidity in Mumbai is higher about 40–80%
as compared to Pune which is about 30 to
60%.
Figure shows the correlation between
O concentration with temperature and
3
relative humidity in both the cities of
Mumbai and Pune. Ozone with temperature
shows positive correlation & the correlation
coefficient is stronger in Pune (r = 0.64)
while O with relative humidity shows a
3
negative correlation in both the cities.
Hence, with the increase in the temperature,
it helps in the formation of higher
O concentration while relative humidity has
3
an inverse relation with O .
3
By this discussion we came to conclusion that
how ozone and its precursors concentration
fluctuations during lockdown in two cities
which are close enough but having different
geographical environments. During
lockdown the level of ozone’s precursors
declined considerably while the ozone level
increased. In coastal city Mumbai the
variation in ozone is mainly controlled by the
ratio of VOC/NOx and in Mumbai there is
less reduction in NO2 and VOC as compared
to Pune.
VOC played main role in monitoring the
ozone behaviour during lockdown so air
pollution mitigation strategies should be
focused more towards controlling the
emission sources of VOCs.

Greenhouse effect
Decrease in greenhouse gas emission of 2.7%
per year to keep below 1.5 degree Celsius.
But the decrease in emissions this year will
not do much to impact climate change, as it is
extremely small compared to the emissions
accumulated so far, and compared to the
emissions cuts needed to tackle climate
change
The coronavirus-triggered lockdown has led
to a steep fall in global carbon emissions by
17 per cent in early April as compared to
2019 levels with India's emissions dropping
by 26 per cent, according to a study.
Effect of photochemical smog

Photochemical smog is a type of smog

produced when ultraviolet light from the sun
reacts with nitrogen oxides in the
atmosphere. It is visible as a brown haze, and
is most prominent during the morning and
afternoon, especially in densely populated,
warm cities.
Photochemical smog potential in Delhi is
generally high due to the high local emission
of O3 precursors (i.e. NOx, CO and VOCs)
and the favourable meteorological conditions
like high temperature and low wind speed.
As Lock down imposed, NOx emission
reduced which results in decrease of
photochemical smog formation, which is
good news for us. People in India can see the
Effect on Aerosol
An aerosol is a suspension of fine solid
particles or liquid droplets in air or another
gas. Examples of natural aerosols are fog,
mist, dust, forest exudates and geyser steam.
Examples of anthropogenic aerosols are
particulate air pollutants and smoke.
Lockdown decreased Aerosol concentration
in atmosphere. Aerosol Index lower down
due to lockdown.
Some major chemical components are
PM2.5, PM10. COVID-19 lockdown reduced
PM concentrations in five Indian cities by
2.5

Himalayas for the first time in 'decades,' as
the lockdown eases air pollution. Pictures
below shows how smog reduced after
implementation of Lockdown.
up to 54%. It was however presumed that
extreme preventive measures of entire
lockdown in India might have reduced the air
pollution level and therefore decreased the
aerosol optical depth (AOD). Lockdown
events possibly may play a crucial role as a
potential solution for air pollution abatement
in the future.
The study predicted aerosol optical depths
(AOD) for years 2016-2019, average of these
years was generated for India and compared
with AOD estimated during lockdown period
(25th march to 25th April of 2020). A
considerable difference can be observed in
fig. It shows the decreased AOD mainly in
Rajasthan, North India, South India East part
of the India and central India. And less
differences are observed in the western part
of India.
Comparison of Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) during 25
March to 25 April for 2016-2019 and during lockdown of
2020.
Aerosol Index is related to air pollution. The
research has also estimated phase wise
aerosol levels in the India. The study also
estimated aerosol concentrations in context
of global climate change. If human activity is
less, it directly affects the aerosol
concentrations which are directly related to
pollution and climate.
Comparison of Aerosol Index estimated during 25 March to
25 April for 2016-2019 and during lockdown of 2020.
Conclusion
Most of the activities including industrial,
transport, and tourism were put on hold
during lockdown and thus showed an
improvement in the air quality. Air quality
of different of India showed as significant
decrease in the pollutant concentration
except ozone. There is increase in ozone as
the variation in ozone is mainly controlled
by the ratio of VOC/NOx. VOC played
major role in monitoring the ozone
behaviour during lockdown so air pollution
mitigation strategies should be focused more
towards controlling the emission sources of
VOCs.
We can say that the Covid-19 pandemic is a
moral to learn from the benefits associated
with the restriction of human activities
during lockdown period not only in terms of
safety but also as improvement in the air
quality. The lockdown was proven as an
ideal policy to tame pollution and its adverse
effects on human health but as we know that
lock down is not permanent, also it’s not a
good option to reduced air pollution.
As Lockdown Released, we have observed
the gradual increase in emissions. For air
pollution control, we can implement some
policies, New Technologies, Some filters
etc.
Improve dispersion/dilution, Installation of References
control equipment, Waste treatments,
Emission filters. Lecture slide of CE558

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11
869-020-00863-1

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/articl
e/abs/pii/S0048969720326036

https://www.insider.com/before-after-
photos-show-less-air-pollution-during-
pandemic-lockdown

Y_B_Katpatal_Aerosol_English-1_IIT
KANPUR

Sharma2020_Article_EpigrammaticStudyO
nTheEffectOf

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11
869-020-00958-9

https://www.news18.com/news/india/air-
quality-improves-across-india-during-covid-
19-lockdown-pollution-watchdog-
2561781.html