Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser

Air pollution terrain nexus: A review considering energy generation and T

consumption
⁎
Xue-Chao Wanga, , Jiří Jaromír Klemeša, Xiaobin Dongb, Weiguo Fanb, Zihan Xub, Yutao Wangc,
Petar Sabev Varbanova
a
Sustainable Process Integration Laboratory – SPIL, NETME Centre, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Brno University of Technology – VUT Brno, Technická 2896/2,
616 69 Brno, Czech Republic
b
State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
c
Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention (LAP3) and Tyndall Centre, Department of Environmental Science & Engineering, Fudan
University, Shanghai 200438, China

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Air pollution caused by energy generation and consumption is both a global as well as localised issue. It con-
Air pollution terrain nexus tributes to global warming along with degradation in human health, ecosystem health, local and global sus-
Air pollutants tainable development. About 75% of the global GHG emissions, 66% of NOx emissions and most of the PM
Terrain emissions are from energy sectors. Energy sectors have also been reported as the main contributors (90%) of SO2
Energy generation
emission in China. Among various influential factors (like energy utilisation, the intensity of economic activities,
Energy consumption
Air pollutants modelling
climatic conditions), the terrain is one of the key elements for the formation and dispersion of air pollution. The
Air pollutants sampling relationship between air pollution and terrain requires to be more deeply studied. The main contributions of this
review include: 1) Summarising the main sources and types of air pollutants as well as the emission char-
acteristics of different sector groups; 2) Proposing the mechanism of air pollution terrain nexus; 3) Reviewing
modelling and experiments approaches for air pollution terrain nexus simulation; 4) Highlighting the existing
limitations and challenges. This review provides a better understanding of the air pollution terrain nexus. It can
contribute to mitigating the air pollution problems.

1. Background
Air pollution reduction plays a significant role in supporting sus-
tainable development. Air pollution, mainly caused by energy genera-
tion and consumption, is one of the global as well as localised specific
issues. It has accumulated continuous contribution to global warming
[1], becoming a big threat to the stability of global climate [2], eco-
system services [3], human well-being [4], plants living [5], economic
development [6], etc. Energy generation and consumption related
human activities are key contributors to air pollutant emissions. The
generation and consumption of energy by fossil fuels however as well as
biomass and some other renewable energies is resulting in the air
pollutant emissions like greenhouse gas (GHG) including nitrous oxides
(NOx), sulphur oxides (SOx), dust and particulate matters (PMs). The
energy needed for manufacturing, processing and transporting, mate-
rials mining, maintenance, cleaning, construction and dealing with it at
the end of the life, relates to the formation and emission of air pollu-
tants. For example, from the perspective of the life cycle GHG emissions
assessment, various energies result in GHG emissions during the pro-
cesses of electricity generation, see Fig. 1.
According to a study conducted by Amponsah et al. [7], the gen-
eration of heat and electricity is the key contributor to GHG emissions
worldwide. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
[8] reported that most GHG and haze/smog emissions worldwide come

Abbreviations: GHG, Greenhouse Gases; NOx, Nitrous Oxides; PMs, Particulate Matters; SOx, Sulphur Oxides; EPA, United States Environmental Protection Agency;
WHO, World Health Organization; EEA, European Environment Agency; COx, Carbon Oxides; PFCs, Perfluorocarbons; CH4, Methane; HFCs, Hydrofluorocarbons;
NF3, Natrium Trifluoride; SF6, Sulphur Hexafluoride; NAAQS, National Ambient Air Quality Standards of Us.; NMVOC, Non-Methane Volatile Organic Compounds;
APTN, Air Pollution Terrain Nexus; MM5, Fifth-Generation Pennsylvania State University-National Center For Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Mode; TAPM, The Air
Pollution Model; WRF, Weather Research and Forecasting Model; OSPM, Operational Street Pollution Model; ANN, Artificial Neural Network; LULUCF, Land Use,
Land-Use Change and Forestry; CMAQ, Community Multiscale Air Quality Model; BNN, Biological Neural Network; ARMA, Autoregressive Moving Average; SVR,
Support Vector Regression; RS, Remote Sensing; AMS, Air Monitoring Site; MOS, Metal Oxide Semiconductor; RH, Relative Humidity
⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: wang@fme.vutbr.cz (X.-C. Wang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2019.01.049
Received 9 December 2018; Received in revised form 23 January 2019; Accepted 24 January 2019
1364-0321/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
X.-C. Wang et al.
Fig. 1. Life cycle GHG emission estimates of electricity generation methods [7].
Fig. 2. Global GHG emissions by economic sector, data extracted from EPA [8].
GHG emissions from industry sector mainly include the burning of fossil fuels
for energy. It also involves chemical, metallurgical, etc.; GHG emissions from
transportation sector include burning of fossil fuels for various transportations;
GHG emissions from building sector involves the generation of outside energy
and inside burning for heat and cooking.
from energy production and consumption. As shown in Fig. 2, the lar-
gest single contributor (25%) to GHG emissions is the utilisation of coal,
followed by the production of heat and electricity from oil and natural
gas, trailed by energy-related industries (21%), transportation (14%),
other energy-consuming sectors (10%) and buildings (6%). Energy
generation and consumption related human activities contribute about
three-quarters of GHG emissions, which are the main driving forces of
the global climate change.
Yang et al. [9] also pointed out that the causes resulting in air
pollutant emissions can be divided into two types, direct and indirect
causes, although they have not yet been distinguished very well. Both
direct and indirect causes include energy-related factors. Direct energy
consumption greatly contributes to the air pollutant emissions. The
indirect factors (like socioeconomic factors [10]) can affect the energy
utilisation methods, consequently influent the air pollutant emissions
[9]. For example, NOx, including NO2 and NO from transportation fuels
consumption (15–25%), power plants burned fossil fuels (30–50%),
along with industrial facilities (25–35%) [11]. Energy-related factors
contribute to more than two-thirds of NOx emissions. Table 1 shows the
NOx emission factors.
Regarding the SO2 emission, China is the largest SO2 emitter
worldwide. The coal utilisation in both industrial facilities and power
plants has contributed to around 90% of total SO2 emission in China
[12]. The sources of NO2 and SO2, mainly from fossil fuels burning, are
also the sources of PM emissions, like PM0.5, PM2.5, PM10 [13]. How-
ever, the PM sources are relatively diffuse because secondary PMs
generate from other air pollutants like NO2 or SO2 [13].
Energy sectors have been playing a key role in air pollutant emis-
sions, in the context of rapid urbanisation and industrialisation
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85
worldwide, especially in developing countries [14]. Air pollution has
been generating very widespread negative influences, especially, but
not only, on human health [15]. Following the latest report of World
Health Organization (WHO) [16], the very air we breathe has been
increasingly polluted: nine out of ten people now are breathing the
polluted air, resulting in 7 M people are killed by polluted air every
year. One-third of deaths from stroke, lung cancer and heart disease are
caused by air pollution. Another latest report from WHO [17] showed
that more than 90% of the children under the age of 15 y (1.8 × 109
children) worldwide are breathing the polluted air, which brings ser-
ious risk to their health and development. In developing countries, al-
most all children under the age of 5 are exposed to higher concentra-
tions of PM2.5. The studies conducted by European Environment Agency
(EEA) [18] showed that, although the air quality in Europe has been
slowly improving, a significant proportion of urban population in the
EU-28 was exposed to concentrations of certain air pollutants above the
EU limit or target values between 2013 and 2015. According to the EEA
air quality report [19], fine PMs concentrations resulted in about
428,000 premature deaths in 2014 in 41 European countries, around
399,000 of which were in the EU-28. Many regions have been facing
particulate pollution, like haze, especially in the central eastern region
of China. There were about 800 M people affected by the extremely
severe and persistent haze pollution in 2013 in China [14]. Especially
since autumn–winter 2016, severe weather-related pollution events
have occurred repeatedly in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region and
surrounding areas. These events have become known as the “pain of the
hearts and lungs” of the Chinese [20]. Air pollution is one of the key
factors that should be responsible for climate change [21]. GHG emis-
sions, such as carbon oxides (COx), NOx, perfluorocarbons (PFCs),
methane (CH4), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), natrium trifluoride (NaF3)
and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), are known to contribute to global
warming and consequently to the climate change [22]. Poor air quality
or air pollution also have significant increasing medical cost, economic
impacts, reducing the productivity of workers, damaging soil, crops,
forests, lakes and rivers [19]. Acid rain is another serious problem
caused by air pollution that human beings have been facing worldwide
[23]. Regional air pollution is also a potential problem in many parts of
the globe. A study conducted by Huang et al. [14] stated that, on a
longer timescale, North America, Arctic and Pacific may be influenced
by the air pollutants from China after long-range transmission, which
results in the Chinese air problems become truly global air problems.
The acid rain in Scandinavian countries has been caused by air pollu-
tion in some regions of Europe like the UK. In Canada, part of air
pollution is caused by the air pollutants blow by winds from USA [23].
Improvements in air quality would benefit our health and economic
development, help tackle climate change, etc. [19].
In the past 70 y, a lot of progress has been achieved in under-
standing the sources and characteristics of air pollution and its trans-
mission [5]. Especially since the air pollution episodes that happened in
Donora, PA in 1948 and in London in 1952. Table 2 shows some
milestones in air pollution legislation history in USA and China, as well
X.-C. Wang et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

Table 1
NOx emission factors (kg NO2 /t) [11].
Fuel type NOx Emissions

Transportation Domestic use Electricity Industry Others

Coal 7.5 1.19–2.24 4.00–11.80 2.38–7.50 3.75

Gasoline 15.00–58.20 16.7 2.10–16.70 16.7 16.70
Crude Oil 5.09 1.7 2.10–10.60 3.35–7.26 3.05
Coke 9 2.25 9 4.50
Residual oil 27.40–54.10 1.95 2.10–10.06 5.84 3.50
Diesel 13.24–58.20 3.21 2.10–8.54 9.62 5.77
Kerosene 27.4 2.49 21.2 7.46 4.48
Natural gas (10−4kg NO2/m3) 20.85 14.62 17.27–55.67 20.85–27.14 14.62

as some serious air pollution events in different areas worldwide.
Many factors can influence the formation, transmission and dis-
persion of air pollution, such as intensity of economic activities [31],
energy utilisation, bushfire smoke, humidity, society, weather, land-
scape [32]. Among them, the terrain and the air masses movement
caused by the terrain are the most significant impact factors [33].
Different types of terrain and geographical features have been sig-
nificantly influencing the concentrations of air pollutants, as well as the
atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere [34]. The most
concerned types of pollution, like air pollution, water pollution and
land pollution, are all affected by the terrain [35]. In the context of
serious air pollution worldwide, especially in developing countries, the
relationship between air pollution and terrain has received increasing
attention from social and environmental groups [36]. The terrain in-
fluences the formation, transmission and dispersion of air pollution
mainly through localised airflow and temperature patterns, humidity,
boundary layer, especially in complex terrain areas, like a basin, valley,
mountain area [35]. Airflow is well known to affect air pollution
transmission. Air pollutants can either spread out or settle based on
airflow impacted by terrain shape differences. It is not an easy task to
make the mechanism clear or model all processes [33].
Some related studies have been conducted focusing on this topic.
Terrain can affect airflow and even the atmospheric circulation, con-
sequently affecting the flow and dispersion of air pollutants. Nyeki et al.
[37] measured the vertical mixing by using LIDAR and resulted that
daytime convective boundary layer processes are significant deriving
forces for air pollutants transmission. Dommen et al. [38] studied the
existence of forced transmission of air pollutants over the Alps but the
detailed mechanisms need to be depended. The research conducted by
Palau et al. [39] showed that complex terrain can be a key contributor
to the air convection, proposing that the valley/ridge circulations
generate a significant influence on the regional air pollution transmis-
sion. It is a significant driving force for the settlement and dispersion of
air pollutants. Sun et al. [40] proposed that the stagnant meteorological
condition is an important factor for the periodic cycle haze generation
of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the capital region of China. The me-
teorological condition of this area, to a considerable degree, is con-
trolled by the terrain conditions of this region. Because the mountains,
laying at the northwest of Beijing, hinder the airflow from the north-
west, which should serve as the driving factor for dispersing the air
pollution. The similar conclusion was also drawn by Guo et al. [41],
elucidating the severe urban haze formation in China.
The relationship between air pollution and the terrain is highly
variable over spatial and temporal conditions and consequently difficult
to simulate or model accurately, especially in the regions with complex
conditions [42]. It is a pivotal element for comprehensive analysis of
environmentally sustainable development. As far as authors knowledge,
current researches mainly focus on case studies of certain regions. They
monitor the air pollutants or analysing the terrain's influences on the
main air pollutants, based on certain models or experiments. There are
not many systematic studies or reviews of the air pollution terrain
nexus. To narrow this gap, this study aims at reviewing the relationship
between air pollution and terrain, clearing the mechanism of the
driving forces, highlighting the monitoring methods, discussing the
limitations and challenges. It can be a stepping stone to understand the
air pollution nexus, supporting and directing future studies.

Table 2
Some milestones in air pollution History, information extracted and extended from Seinfeld [5].
1948 20 deaths and 40% of 14,000 inhabitants of the town were killed because of the Air pollution episode in Donora, Pennsylvania [24].
1952 4000 deaths over a two-week period were caused by the Sulphur and soot-laden smog in London [25].
1955 Air pollution Control Act firstly identified air pollution as a US national problem [26].
1963 Emissions standards for stationary sources was set by the Clean Air Act of 1963. Amendments were passed in 1965, 1966, 1967, and 1969, authorizing the Secretary
of Health, Education, and Welfare to set standards for motor vehicle emissions [27].
1970 The US Congress passes the Clean Air Act of 1970, the first substantive environmental statute enacted by Congress. The law established National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS) and set new limits on emissions from stationary and mobile sources. Also allowed states to establish their own stricter standards, which
California did [5].
1977 Revised US Clean Air Act Amendments passed by Congress, providing more time for areas with more serious air quality problems to comply with standards [28].
1988 EPA establishes the Indoor Air Division of the Office of Air and Radiation to address indoor air quality issues.
1990 The US Congress passes Clean Air Act of 1990, tightening automobile emissions standards, encouraging the use of low-sulphur fuels, and mandating instalment of
Best Available Control Technology [28].
1997 EPA strengthens the standard for the airborne PMs.
2000 Tier 2 program should be phased in starting in 2004 when refiners had to produce low-sulphur fuel for passenger vehicles. Tier 2 also sets tailpipe emission
standards for all classes of passenger vehicles, including sport utility vehicles and light-duty trucks [5].
2001 US Supreme Court supports health-based air pollution standards when it rejects challenges to the new standard for PMs.
2001 The Heavy-Duty Diesel Rule will require significant future reductions in highway diesel engine PMs emissions. It will also require diesel oil refiners to reduce most
sulphur from diesel fuel by 2006 in preparation for new engines in 2007.
2013 In China, in response to the extremely severe and persistent haze pollution experienced by about 800 M people during the first quarter of 2013. Several policies
aimed at reducing air pollution were released by the Chinese government [14].
2015–2017 Indonesia fire season. 2.6 Mha of land in burned between June and October 2015, resulting in US$ 16 × 109 of estimated economic damage and the generation of
the worst haze on record [29]. Smoke from the fires sickened 500,000 people, drifted into neighbouring countries. At the height of the disaster, the daily CO2
emissions exceeded those from all US economic activity. A series of fire-prevention policies have been established by Indonesia government, including the
establishment of Peatland Restoration Agency [30].

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X.-C. Wang et al.
The next part of this review is organised as follows. Section 2 for-
mulates the sources and types of air pollutants. Characteristics of the
main air pollutants from different sector groups have been reviewed.
Section 3 illustrates the mechanism of air pollution terrain nexus,
mainly by taking the forms of 1) terrain forced vertical and horizontal
transmission of air pollutants and 2) terrain forced concentration of air
pollutants. Main methods, as modelling and experiments, of monitoring
air pollution terrain nexus are analysed in Section 4, including analysis
of the merits and demerits of different approaches. Section 5 discussed
the limitation and challenges. Section 6 is the conclusion section of this
review.
2. The sources and types of air pollutants
There are many types of air pollutants, mainly by taking the forms
of gas, dust and PMs, such as PM10, PM2.5, PM1, GHG (COx, CH4, NOx,
etc.) and SOx [43]. These air pollutants can directly or indirectly impair
the air visibility, transmit the virus, produce acidification, etc., which
brings serious negative influence worldwide, especially on the stability
of global climate, quality of human daily life, etc. It is significant to
clarify the sources and main types of air pollutants for their analysis and
assessment. As shown in Fig. 3, the sources, types and characteristics of
air pollution the population are reviewed. In general, air pollutants
mainly come from three sources, see Table 3.
Air pollutants can be primary and secondary air pollutants, many of
them can cling to the dust, haze and smog. It also shows that energy
utilisation (plants emissions, municipal emissions, mobile transporta-
tion, etc.) is one of the most significant contributors to air pollutant
emissions [44]. For example, as emphasised by Lelieveld et al. [1], one-
third of total energy consumption worldwide comes from commercial
and residential energy utilisation, which is the main contributor to the
particle emissions and premature mortality globally. Jaramillo and
Muller [45] also said that the SO2 emission from power generation
contributes most to social monetary damages. The energy utilisation
Fig. 3. Sources and types of air pollutants. Developed and extended from Fan [22].
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85
strategies, with higher efficiency, sustainable concept and lower air
pollutant emissions, are crucial for air pollutants emissions reduction.
Fig. 4 shows emission sources of different air pollutants by sector
groups. In general, air pollutant sources are with a big difference.
Commercial, Institutional and Households (47.74%) and Road Trans-
port (20.29%) are the main contributors to CO. Agriculture (93.88%) is
in a dominant position for NH3 emission in the EU. More recent data
from Xu et al. [46] indicated that many large agricultural counties, like
China, India, are the main sources of NH3 emission because of the
utilisation of agricultural fertilizers. Up to 46.79% emission of Non-
methane Volatile Organic Compounds (NMVOC) are from Industrial
Processes and Product Use. Regarding the NOx, the main contributors
are Road Transport (37.93%) and Energy Production and Distribution
(20.83%). This is consistent with the contribution of Miyazaki et al.
[47]. Over 35% of PM10 and 57% of PM2.5 in the EU are from Com-
mercial, Institutional and Households. This is different from that in
China, which is mainly from coal combustion, vehicle emissions, and
industrial [48]. Because China is the largest steel producer worldwide
and iron industry has been contributing a lot to China's economic de-
velopment. Energy Production and Distribution contribute most
(60.08%) to SOx emissions. Based on Fig. 5, the emissions of different
sector groups are also different, SOx has a major role in the overall
sector emissions of both Energy Production and Distribution as well as
Energy Use in Industry. NOx is the main emission of the sectors like
Energy Production and Distribution, Energy Use in Industry, Non-Road
Transport and Road Transport. NMVOC and NH3 are the main emis-
sions of the sectors of Industrial Processes and Product Use as well as
Agriculture separately. Energy generation and consumption along with
related human activities (like Energy Production and Distribution, En-
ergy Use, Road Transport, Industrial Processes and Product Use) have
been significantly contributing to the air pollutant emissions. The sus-
tainable and efficient energy utilisation strategies and policies can be
positively effective on the air pollution reduction [49].
X.-C. Wang et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

Table 3
Air pollutants sources.
Sources Details

Stationary Mostly related to energy generation and usage, including plants emissions, municipal emissions, chemical product emissions, etc.
Mobile Mainly energy-related, including trains, cars, lorries, ships, motorbikes, etc.
Nature Wildfire, sea spray, volcano, geotherm, etc.

Fig. 4. Emissions of the main air pollutants by sector groups in EU, data extracted from EEA [18].

3. Mechanism of air pollution terrain nexus (APTN)
To clearly describe and analyse the mechanism of air pollution
terrain nexus, the schematic diagrams focusing on different situations
are established. This section outlines two basic types of APTN: (i) ter-
rain forced vertical and horizontal transmission of air pollutants; (ii)
terrain forced concentration of air pollutants.
1) Airflow over mountainous regions forced by terrain difference.
2) Factors caused by weather system changes, such as wind, rain, low-
pressure [52].
3) Boundary layer processes, troposphere and stratosphere [50].
4) Orographic injection of air pollutants [53].
5) Atmospheric convection caused by radiative heating, such as that
produced by thunderstorms [54].

3.2. Terrain forced concentration of air pollutants

3.1. Terrain forced vertical and horizontal transmission of air pollutants
The stable synoptic condition is one of the key factors that should be
Fig. 6 shows the first schematic diagram of air pollution terrain
responsible for the formation and evolution of air pollution under cold
nexus. This is based on the mechanism of terrain forced vertical and
weather condition, especially in basin or valley areas (or half mountain
horizontal transmission of air pollutants [50]. Air pollutants can be
surrounded areas). It contributes to the accumulation of air pollutants
transmitted from sources to the mountain areas by horizontal airflow
and imprisons the horizontal dilution, resulting in a high concentration
and then upward by the vertical airflow.
of air pollutants [55]. The terrain is one of the important factors of
In the complex terrain, airflow contributes to the vertical compo-
stable synoptic. As shown in Fig. 7, developed by the authors, there is
nent of the wind fields. Air pollutants are transferred directly upward to
not enough strong upward airflow in the basin or valley. Air pollutants
the middle and upper of the troposphere from the surface. The air
cannot be transferred vertically and horizontally like that shown in
pollutants transmitted to a higher altitude are much more stable be-
Fig. 6. The airflow outside of the basin or valley cannot be blown into
cause of colder temperature [50]. There are much fewer reactions and
the basin. Air circulation between inside and outside of the basin or
the reaction rate is much lower. Air pollutants can be transmitted far
valley is weak. Air pollutants generated in the basin or valley would be
and widely by the horizontal airflow, in the form of both parcel and
imprisoned and increasingly concentrated.
plume in troposphere and stratosphere. This is one of the most sig-
Several air pollution events can be classified into this mechanism.
nificant reasons that result in air pollution diffusion, especially in
For example, the haze pollution in the capital region of China. In recent
complex terrain areas. For example, haze pollution in the capital region
years, haze is a considerably serious environmental problem in China
of China can be transferred to the downwind area by the enhanced
that influences air quality, regional and global climates as well as
northwest wind, resulting in the expansion of polluted regional scope
human health [56]. In the first quarter of 2013, an extremely severe and
[51].
persistent haze pollution outbreak in East of China, about 800 M people
In this scenario, the transmission and mixing of air pollutants from
and 1.3 Mkm2 were exposed in it [14]. Especially in a densely popu-
the ground layer into free troposphere are influenced by several factors.
lated and industrialised Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the haze is mainly
They include:
caused by PM2.5 [57]. This has been drawing increasing regional and

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X.-C. Wang et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

Fig. 5. Emissions of different sector groups in EU, data extracted from EEA [18].

Fig. 6. Terrain forced vertical and horizontal transmission of air pollutants, Fig. 7. Terrain forced concentration of air pollutants.
developed from Kim and Stockwell [50].

76
X.-C. Wang et al.
worldwide attention. There are many driving forces for the formation,
evolution and transmission of the haze in China, which can be divided
into internal and external causes. Terrain related causes belong to the
external causes:
Internal causes mainly include:
1) PM2.5 emissions from energy sectors, like transportation, industry
[55];
2) VOC and NOx emissions from transportation and SOx emissions from
regional industry [58];
3) The formation of secondary aerosols [59]. The secondary aerosols
drive the formation of severe haze pollution to a large extent. Or-
ganic aerosols and PM2.5 contribute 44–71% and 30–77% of haze
pollution separately (average data from Beijing, Shanghai,
Guangzhou and Xi’an) [14].
External causes mainly include:
1) Depression of strong cold air activities, unusual atmospheric circu-
lation, and unfavourable dispersion caused by meteorological and
geographical conditions [58].
2) Air pollutants accumulation in the shallow layer caused by a tem-
perature inversion and descending air motions in the planetary
boundary layer [60].
3) High air pollutants concentration within source regions caused by
weak surface air circulation or wind speed. The accumulation of air
pollutants is one of the most significant driving forces responsible
for the haze formation [51].
As is shown in external causes, the terrain is an important con-
tributor to haze formation, evolution and transportation, or even can be
extended to all types of air pollution. As is shown in Fig. 8, developed
by the authors, the capital region of China is surrounded by the Taihang
Mountains and Yanshan Mountains [61]. Northwest winds prevail in
winter in the region. If the wind is not strong enough, it would be
blocked by Taihang Mountains and Yanshan Mountains. Weakened
surface winds in this region are favourable for the formation and con-
centration of haze pollution [60]. Although this is a case from China,
there are other examples that can be treated the same way, for example,
the smog which occurred in London in the early fifties [25].
The detailed mechanism of air pollution terrain nexus can be much
Fig. 8. Terrain promotes the formation of haze in the capital region, China.
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85
more complex than the schematic diagrams. It very much depends on
the existing terrain conditions, air pollutants properties, hydrothermal
conditions, atmosphere conditions, etc. It also depends on geographic
scales and the influences of human beings.
4. Methods of monitoring air pollution terrain nexus
From Section 3, the relationship between air pollution and terrain
can be very complex, depending on various influences factors. Mon-
itoring, modelling and forecasting their nexus efficiently and precisely
are also difficult. For addressing these challenges, modelling and ex-
periments (including sampling methods) have been studied or con-
ducted during the last years. Verified and effective models are sig-
nificant for the simulating and predicting of air pollution terrain nexus
and providing strategies for regional air pollution reduction decisions
making. Experiments are crucial for obtaining and processing data of
air pollution.
4.1. Modelling of air pollution terrain nexus
Many models have been developed or improved for monitoring the
air pollution, for example, ACCMIP model [62], WRF–Chem Model
[63], Fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University-National Center
for Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Model (MM5) [64]. However, not
all of them can reflect, simulate or predict the relationship between air
pollution and terrain. This section focuses on the modelling methods for
studying the air pollution nexus. Several models are illustrated and
their merits and demerits have been analysed.
Several models can achieve the goal that predicting the air pollution
terrain nexus, which is highly important for the complex terrain. Those
models are based on the measured parameters, such as terrain (slope,
altitude, angle, etc.), pollutants (PMs, SO2, NOx, etc.), wind speed/di-
rection, temperature, hydrothermal condition, rain. These models can
also predict the air pollution episodes in the future based on different
scenarios. As is shown in Table 4, these models are reviewed and
summarised from other scholars’ study results. They have been verified
for modelling and predicting air pollution terrain nexus.
From Table 4, the most concerned air pollutants by these models
have been PMs (PM2.5, PM10, RSPM, SPM, etc.), CO, SO2, NOx, etc.
These air pollutants are corresponding with the regional and global
environmental issues. PMs are both the key elements of smog and haze
X.-C. Wang et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

[71] and the dangerous factors/mediums of many diseases, like cardi-

Weak wind and low planetary boundary layer (PBL) height played important roles for the formation of the
ovascular disease [72]. CO2 is one of the key contributors to GHG,

The low-level flow field is highly influenced by the topography and widely varies in different seasons.
Maximum pollutant mixing ratios follow the confluence line, crosses over the most populated areas in
accounting for around two-thirds of all GHG emissions as shown in
Fig. 9. Over emitted CO2 has been drawing increasing attention from

Good at estimating ground pollution concentrations in a stable atmosphere over rough terrain.
human beings worldwide, especially in the context of global warming.
N2O is a typical atmospheric pollutant. It can both destroy ozonosphere
and contribute to the atmospheric greenhouse effect. Although N2O is
trace gas, its global warming potential is 298 times more than CO2 for a
Complex terrain features have an influence on air pollutants concentration levels.

100 y timescale [73]. SO2 is the key element of acid rain, which is a
huge threat to the human respiratory tract, plants, buildings, etc.
Based on the most concerned models listed in Table 4, their merits
and demerits are analysed as follows:
Reliable for air pollution modelling in complex topography.

4.1.1. TAPM model

TAPM is a three-dimensional prognostic model that solves the fun-
damental fluid dynamics and scalar transport equations to predict both
air pollution concentrations and prognostic meteorological data [75].
Regarding the air pollutants, TAPM can consider the emissions from
both the activities on the premises of main industrial platform and the
other pollution sources, such as residential heating, other industries,
(Verify the accuracy of the model)

(Verify the accuracy of the model)

traffic, dump heaps. TAPM can avoid site-specific meteorological ob-

servations. The flows, which are significant for local-scale air pollution,
can be predicted by the TAPM model, for example, terrain-induced
flows, sea breezes [65]. TAPM solves the momentum equations for
horizontal wind components. It also achieves the scalar equations of
complex terrain.

specific humidity of water vapours, potential virtual temperature, cloud

Main results

water and rainwater. The incompressible continuity equation for ver-

heavy haze.

tical velocity in a terrain-following coordinate system is also solved by

TAPM. Gas-phase and aqueous-phase reactions for SO2 and particles
and dust mode for total suspended particles (PM30, PM20, PM10, PM2.5
VOC: volatile organic compounds; RSPM: respirable suspended particulate matter; SPM: suspended particulate matter.
PBL

and even lower, like PM1 and PM0.5 have been seriously considered).
√

For this reason, they have been integrated into the TAPM. This model
VOC

also covers the gas phase photochemical reactions and the wet and dry
√

deposition effects. TAPM is a very strong model for this area, which is
O3

an available tool for year-long modelling [76]. The datasets have em-
NOx

bedded in TAPM, which include the crucial input data needed for me-
√
√

√
√
√

teorological simulations, like terrain features, land use/cover data. It is

SO2

very convenient for a quick configuration for many regions. TAPM has
√

been used for the year-long air condition simulating of Australia, two
Pb

other experiment points were put in US (Kincaid and Indianapolis) [77]

PSU–NCAR: Pennsylvania State University-National Center for Atmospheric Research.
Monitored/simulated air pollutants

COx

and New Zealand [78]. The results showed that TAPM performed well
√

√
√

even in complex terrain like coastal, inland, from sub-tropical to mid-

SPM

latitude conditions. It is very good for the prediction of extreme pol-

√

lution statistics, which is significant for environmental influence si-

RSPM

mulation, for both reactive (like NO2, O3 and PMs) and non-reactive
√

pollutants from various air pollutants sources.

PM2.5

However, when focusing on one specific air pollutant, PM10 and its
√
√

dispersion, the performance of TAPM in meteorology simulation is

PM10

eroded somewhat, comparing to other modelling results have published

√
√

using the same model [78]. For the complex terrain, the TAPM model
sometimes underestimates the frequencies magnitude of lake flows,
Lagrangian Particle Dispersion Model (FLEXPART) [69]
Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model [64]

Fifth-generation PSU–NCAR Mesoscale Mode (MM5)

Models examples for air pollution terrain nexus.

local mountain flows, development of mountain flows in the lower al-

Operational Street Pollution Model (OSPM) [66]

titudes, low temperatures in summer and extremely low temperatures

in winter. On the contrary, TAPM also overestimates the westerlies in
the center of the simulation domain [79]. It can be concluded that
The Air Pollution Model (TAPM) [65]

Artificial Neural Network (ANN) [68]

TAPM can be implemented for year-long simulations without data as-

similation for saving time. However, the output location should be
carefully chosen by users because they are more sensitive in the
boundaries of the simulated domain.
WRF–Chem Model [63]

4.1.2. WRF–Chem model

K–ε Model [70]

WRF-Chem model, extended version of the WRF model, is a coupled

Tools/Models

online community model. It has been widely used three-dimensional

[67]

atmospheric and air pollutant simulation model [80], serving both at-
Table 4

mospheric researches and operational forecasting [81]. The WRF-Chem

model is with functions of simulating atmospheric chemistry and

78
X.-C. Wang et al.
Fig. 9. Global GHG emissions, per type of gas and source, including LULUCF, adopted from Olivier et al. [74].
aerosols. It can provide the interactive simulation for particles and trace
gases, receiving feedback from the radiatively active gases and particles
and meteorology [82]. The air quality, weather, regional climate, dis-
persion etc. can be well predicted and simulated by the WRF-Chem
model [83]. To be more specific, the functions including:
1) Calculating the dynamical parameter inputs, like the parameters of
wind, boundary layer, temperature, clouds [84].
2) Modelling of dry deposition [85].
3) Surface modelling, like surface ozone mixing ratios [86] and Ha-
logen species (chlorine, bromine and iodine) in the marine boundary
layer [87].
4) Calculating gas-phase chemistry, photolysis and radiation rates
[88].
5) Transmission simulating of airflow (advective, convective, and dif-
fusive flows) [89].
WRF-Chem model is a suitable and powerful method in this field.
However, there are also some demerits with it. Regarding one of its
main function, surface modelling, the study focusing on East Asia
conducted by Zhang et al. [90] showed that the column abundances of
gases can be simulated closely enough for most months, guaranteeing
the normalised mean biases within 30%. However, it has shown ob-
vious biases for the simulation of wind parameters, temperature and
some other chemical related predictions. Results indicated that at
nearly all experiment sites in almost all months during the experiment,
the surface concentrations of major gas species were underpredicted
moderately or even significantly. For example, the normalised mean
biases 61.7% to 99.4% for NOx, 53.8% to 72% for CO, 33.3% to 68.9%
for PM10, 25.2% to 63.9% for PM2.5, 44.5% to 84.2% for SO2. This may
result in significant errors. Regarding air quality forecast and opera-
tional predictions, the WRF-Chem model did not show an advantage
and is less rigorously than MM5-CMAQ.
4.1.3. MM5 model
The first generation of PSU–NCAR Mesoscale model, a mesoscale
model, was developed by the Penn State University and National Center
for Atmospheric Research in the 1970s. The latest version is MM5,
which has been widely used for the simulation of meteorology, air
condition, etc. [91]. It is usually applied on the regional scale, model-
ling and predicting the circulation and transmission of mesoscale at-
mosphere, which can be significant support for the simulation and
79
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85
modelling of air pollution characteristics, mass, transmission, etc.,
especially in complex terrain regions.
One of the main strengths of MM5 model is can be integrated with
other models, like the CMAQ model (Community Multiscale Air Quality
Model) [92]. Deng et al. [93] conducted a very interesting study,
coupling the CMAQ model with other two meteorological models,
namely, MM5 and GRAPES (Global/Regional Assimilation and Predic-
tion System) and comparing their performance of air pollution model-
ling and forecasting. In this study, the Pearl River Delta, China, was as
the case study area and SO2, CO, NO, O3, NO2, PM2.5 were main targets.
Deng et al. [93] discussed the influence of meteorological factors and
physicochemical processes on the simulation results. Results showed
that both coupled models had similar good performance.
However, there are still some demerits with the MM5 model:
1) The simulation and modelling about near-surface processes are in-
sufficient, which results in errors exist in the intermediate process
results and the final results [94].
2) It is sometimes difficult for MM5 to precisely distinguish the phe-
nomena of canopy layer and boundary layer, for example, for the
heat island, etc. This results in narrowing the methods choices for
some specific problems, like the only way to calculate the influence
of complex terrain surface (for example, urban surface) on energy
balance is indirect parameterisation [94].
3) Regarding the complex terrain regions, like the Alpine region, al-
though the performance of MM5 is sensitive to the physical para-
meters, MM5 is worse than WRF model [95].
4) Although the MM5 performs are sensitive to season and tempera-
ture, it insufficient during winter period than in summer [95].
4.1.4. Artificial neural network based method
Artificial neural network (ANN) is a commonly applied method for
estimating and forecasting air pollutants/pollution characteristics,
mass, etc. [96]. It can efficiently assess the concentrations of air pol-
lutants in the atmosphere, such as NO2, SO2, CO, O3, PM2.5, PM10. ANN
comes from the formulation of mathematical models, which is based on
the biological neural network (BNN) [97]. The human brain is a highly
complex information processing system. Its features include the func-
tion of processing the external information stimuli in both parallel and
non-linear ways. The biological nervous system has its own funda-
mental structural element, which is called biological neuron. In analogy
with the BNN, ANN is defined as an architectural structure system that
X.-C. Wang et al.
Fig. 10. An artificial neuron model for forecasting the PM2.5 pollution [100].
consists of many parallels, interconnected set of adaptive processing
units [98], which is a repository that stores experiential knowledge and
makes it available for use, aiming at interacting with the environment
[68]. Compared with the traditional air pollution models, such as the
autoregressive moving average (ARMA), support vector regression
(SVR), etc., the ANN model has a better prediction performance [99].
There is an example of an artificial neuron model for forecasting the
PM2.5 pollution shown in Fig. 10.
In recent years, especially during the past decades, ANN has been
successfully developed and widely used in the field of air pollution si-
mulating and modelling [101]. ANN is also a very good method for
modelling air quality related problems [102]. It has many advantages
comparing other methods:
1) ANN can be well applied in the field of time-series-forecasting.
ANNA has the ability of nonlinear mapping for atmospheric mod-
elling. It is a robust and self-adaptive method which can provide
significant and sufficient simulation performance [99].
2) There is no prior assumption about the data distribution when using
the ANN method. ANN is capable of modelling highly non-linear
relationships and can be trained to accurately generalize when
presented with a new data set [103].
3) It is demonstrated that ANN can provide an accurate prediction of
the hourly concentration of air pollutants more than 10 h in ad-
vance. In this field, A comparison study conducted by Cai et al.
showed that the ANN is better than the MLR model (Multiple Linear
Regression Model) and the CLSD model (California Line Source
Dispersion Model) [68].
On the contrary, ANN is also with some demerits. Even though the
levels of air pollution can be accurately simulated by ANN, the simu-
lation results are just numerical enigmas. It cannot provide further in-
formation about how air pollution is influenced by different factors,
such as those factors from traffic, industrial, meteorological [96]. The
simulation and forecast accuracy of ANN can be improved by the
method of K-means clustering, which means some of the simulation and
forecast results from ANN are not precise enough [104].
4.1.5. Lagrangian particle dispersion model (FLEXPART)
The FLEXPART model was originally developed in 1998 and applied
80
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85
in mesoscale scale to calculate the long-term dispersion of air pollution,
focusing on the point sources, such as power-generating utilities, waste
combustors, industrial plants, etc. [105]. During the past decade's de-
velopment, the FLEXPART model has been improved and extended with
more functions and more widespread use, focusing on various scales
and many different targets. Especially in the field of modelling and
analysis of atmospheric transport and air pollution simulation, it has
been evolved into a comprehensive tool [106]. Its application fields
have been significantly extended, including GHG emissions, short-lived
climate forces like volcanic ash and gases, black carbon (BC) as well as
the water cycle [107]. The development of the FLEXPART model has
been significantly encouraged by the need for further multi-scale and
multi-demand simulation, modelling and analysis. FLEXPART model
can also be used in more wild fields, like moisture sources. The study
conducted by Sun and Wang [108] in 2014 showed that FLIXPART
performed well in the analysing processes of moisture resources of
semiarid grassland in China, especially on precipitation days.
FLEXPART model is good at accurately simulating the emissions air
pollutants from both point and line sources, as it does not influence by
the numerical diffusion. One other benefit of the FLEXPART model
[105] is its flexibility and relatively smaller computational cost. It
usually can be coupled with other tools or models in order to improve
the efficiency, accuracy and precision of simulation, for example,
FLEXPART-WRF model [109], FLEXPART-AROME model flow [110].
Verreyken [110] coupled FLEXPART model and AROME model for si-
mulation the atmospheric circulation, which is one of the main air
pollution transmission driving forces and influenced by canyons, land
and sea breezes and upslope transport airflow.
The FLEXPART model [105] is also with some demerits. It suffers
from some numerical errors because of the interpolation in space and
time when focuses on the meteorological fields.
The models analysed in this section can reflect the air pollution
nexus. Each model has its own strengths and weaknesses. The TAPM
Model, WRF-Chem model and MM5 model are comprehensive models
for simulating air emissions and meteorological data under various
terrain conditions. The ANN model is widely applied with relative
flexibility. However, it is not the best for evaluating the relationship
amongst different parameters. The FLEXPART model mainly focuses on
the point and line air emission sources. When focusing on the local-
scale or mesoscale scale, the TAPM, MM5 and FLEXPART models are
X.-C. Wang et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

suitable candidates. The MM5 and FLEXPART models can be well in-

Air pollutants in the lower valley can remain trapped within the convective boundary layer rather than
Specific terrain results in the generation of main flow fields, temperature change, the concentrate or
tegrated with other models for better simulation results. Several models

Terrain complexity has a significant influence on the dispersion and observation of air pollutants.
can provide time-series-forecasting, especially the TAPM and FLEXP-
ART models. The reality conditions are complex, like terrain, atmo-
sphere, temperature, humidity, etc. It is better to choose the most sui-
table model according to reality demands.

Elevated concentrations of multiple pollutants are identified at lower-elevation sites.

4.2. Experiments for monitoring air pollution

Experiments or sampling are the main sources of data used in

modelling for the simulation, prediction of the air pollution terrain
PBLH is the major factor for the variability of PM2.5 concentration.
Cloud and temperature have an influence on air pollutants flow.

nexus [111]. Experiments data can be used to verify the correction/

accuracy of models and can be the initial data for the prediction of air
pollution terrain nexus. Various methods based on a variety of sensors
can be implemented for monitoring air pollutants. Table 5 shows sev-
eral experiments or sampling methods for air pollutants monitoring
under the complex terrain.
Based on the review of studies in Table 5, during the air pollution
being vented into the free atmosphere.

monitoring process, it is significant to thoroughly monitor the experi-

ments sites allocation, which should fully uniform cover of the region
and all situations [113]. The most concerned methods for air pollution
transmission of air pollutants.

monitoring experiments include two types:

1) Remote Sensing (RS) instruments, like radar, sonar, lidar. This type
of instruments can provide remote sensing of air pollutants without
field monitoring [111], especially for the complex terrain, which
Main results

can guarantee the safety of experimenter and minimise the cost of

experiments [111].
2) Air Monitoring Site (AMS), like Spatial Saturation Monitoring Study.
It uses the field monitoring sensors, based on interactions between
PBL

the sensing material and air pollutants. The AMS is with good re-
T

liability and accuracy. However, it is relatively restricted by ter-

WP

rains, especially in a complex landscape, it is more difficult to ar-

√

WP: Wind Parameters; T: Temperature; PBL: Planetary Boundary Layer Height; AC: Aerosol Concentration.

range test sites and equipment [115]. Take the experiment of

AC

Shmool et al. as an example to show the spatial distribution of sites,

MFF

in their study, authors proposed a spatial saturation monitoring

√

study for targeting the sources of air pollution (PM2.5, NOx, O3, SOx,
NO2
Monitored/simulated air pollutants

black carbon, etc.), understanding the influence of topography and

√

temperature on air pollutants variation [115].

O3

√
SO2

These instruments or sensors are designed based on the chemical

√

and/or physical properties of different air pollutants, which can be

CO

concluded into two principles:

PM2.5

1) Measuring the absorption of different light at visible [116] (for CO2,

√

√
√
√

O3, etc.) or infrared wavelength (for CO2, etc.), or by chemilumi-

PM10

nescence (for NO2, etc.) [117].

√

2) Depending on the interactions between/among sensing materials

Spatial saturation monitoring study

and air pollutants, such as CO, NO2, O3 as well as VOC.

Experiments examples for air pollution terrain nexus.

Air pollution monitoring sensors and instruments can be concluded

Sodar sampling [113]
Sodar sampling [114]

into two main categories:

Radar and lidar [64]
Doppler sodar [111]

Doppler sodar [112]

1) Measuring the concentration of gas phase air pollutants.

2) Measuring either the various properties of different particles or the
contribution of PMs [118].
[115]

The characteristics of different air pollution monitoring sensors are

Remote sensing instruments

presented in Table 6, illustrating the characteristics, principle and

strengths of different kinds of sensors, focusing on different air pollu-
Air monitoring site

tants.

5. Limitations
Methods
Table 5

Simulation or modelling of air pollution terrain nexus is challenging

due to the complex realities. Many limitations, challenges and different

81
X.-C. Wang et al. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 105 (2019) 71–85

uncertainties limit the study of this topic. It is changing, depending on

each specific region and its topography, atmosphere, temperature, the
interaction of different matters in the air. The temperature and hu-
midity can be obvious fluctuation caused by the airflow in the complex

Some single beam devices auto-calibrate as if

terrain areas. The terrain drove atmosphere condition changes, espe-
cially at the edge. The further interaction of different air pollutants will
contribute to the formation of smog, haze, acid rain, etc. Including the
Typically, less sensitive than EC.

meteorological indicators, terrain index with the other critical multi-

background CO2 is 400 ppb

criteria in the developing and selection of model and experiment is very
challengeable.

1) Although many models or tools focus on air pollution or terrain, few

of them can take full consideration of both air pollution and terrain,
Concern 3

especially for simulating the dynamic relationships. Including the

models discussed in 4.1 section, most of them are originally devel-
Cost

oped for the meteorology, focusing on meteorological modelling and

forecasting. Although some of them have been improved with
Sensitive to changes in relative humidity
Drift, frequent recalibration needed, 1 y

Likely sensitive to changes in T and RH

functions of simulating air pollution, it is still difficult for these

Power consumption; fragile materials

Calibration may be misinterpreted or

Does not measure ultrafine particles

models to perfectly reflect the relationship between air pollution

and terrain. Especially for the terrain issues, these models are not
strong enough to reflect the geographic index, like the WRF–Chem
Requires changing a filter

Model [63].
2) Most terrain related models focus on geographical issues, without
features or functions for air pollution. The main challenge of these
models is incapable to completely resolve or model the complex
inaccurate
Concern 2

terrain. One of the biggest challenges for terrain related modelling is

lifetime

the high accuracy topographic inversion [123]. In the field of terrain

analysis, terrain complexity is a crucial feature. However, unlike
slope or aspect, terrain complexity is still an ambiguous concept that
there still has no optimal parameter to quantify it [124]. However,
Sensitive to change of RH, T; cross-

Sensitivity depends on path length

based on these wildly and successfully used models, increasing ex-

Not a direct mass measurement
Still relatively large and costly

tended versions have been conducted well. The ANN model, which
Interferences: CO, VOC, NO2

was extended based on the geographic model and wavelet trans-

In the development stage

formation, has been developed by Feng et al. to forecast the PM2.5

pollution. Results showed that this model can effectively improve
the PM2.5 forecasting accuracy in complex terrain areas [100].
3) The results of modelling and experiments are an inaccuracy or even
Concern 1

sensitivity

incorrect in some conditions like meteorological initial and

Size

boundary. As shown in the study results from Bei [125], the me-
teorological initial and boundary conditions are complex and un-
stable. It is easily influenced and changes frequently, which results
Low cost, low power, small, real-time; more sensitive than Metal-

in the difficulties of monitoring and modelling precisely [126].

4) The long-term and effective simulating, modelling and predicting
needs further improvement, both models and experiments have a
limited range of application. As stated in Sections 3 and 4, me-
teorological and geographical conditions change frequently, which
highly depends on certain terrain conditions. The desirable results
Direct Particle Mass Small, inexpensive, direct mass concentration.
Handheld well established, stable, continuous
Small size; stable, 1–2 y lifetime, inexpensive

Small, inexpensive, commercially available

should include long-term, systematic and precise monitoring data as

well as accuracy simulating result. However, it is still difficult for
Characteristics of air pollution monitoring sensors [118].

Compact, stable to changing RH and T

models and experiments to achieve this goal. Almost all models and
experiments have a limitation in the application range, including
Accuracy, stable to change in P
oxide-semiconductor sensors

Non-dispersive infrared absorption (4.26 µm) [121]

territorial scope (different types of terrain) and studies objects

Characteristics of sensors

(different air pollutants) difference.

5) The accurate monitoring of some air pollution is complex. The
RH: Relative humidity; T: Temperature.
Metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) [119]

characteristics of air pollutants are different and some of them are

Ultraviolet absorption (254 nm) [120]

difficult to capture [118]. For example, PM2.5 is a complex mixture,

including nitrogen compound, organic components, heavy metals,
dust particles, etc., each of them is with differing characteristics. As
Electrochemical cell [118]

shown in the study of Tunno et al. [127], the composition of PM2.5

Particle properties [122]

varies substantially across urban areas, and this spatial patterning,

apparent source-concentration relationships, may vary with me-
CO, O3, NOx, etc.

CO, O3, NOx, etc.

Light Absorption
Light Scattering

teorological conditions (e.g., mixing height, wind direction), parti-

Air pollutants

cularly in areas of complex terrain.

Table 6

CO2
O3

82
X.-C. Wang et al.
6. Conclusions
This paper is focused on the air pollution terrain nexus, reviewing
the main sources and types of air pollutants, presenting the mechanism
of air pollution terrain nexus, analysing the simulation approaches for
air pollution terrain nexus, highlighting the limitations and challenges.
1) Air pollutants are mainly from energy generation and utilisation
related human activities. About 75% global GHG emissions, 66% of
NOx emissions and most PM emissions are from energy sectors.
Energy sectors are also the main sources (90%) of SO2 emission in
China. As the sources shown in Table 3. Especially the first two main
sources, stationary and mobile, which are bound up with human
choices and decision making. They should be seriously involved in
the decision making for future planning and development of cities,
industries and plants. Simultaneously consider Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, the
ventilated condition should be guaranteed in order to avoid the
concentration of air pollutants. Regarding the third source, nature,
although it is not decided by human beings, it should also be taken
into consideration for the planning or strategies making. Settlements
and plants should keep a safe distance to the threats from nature.
2) The mechanism of air pollution terrain nexus can be divided into
two types: 1) Terrain forced vertical and horizontal transmission of
air pollutants; 2) Terrain forced concentration of air pollutants. The
detailed mechanism of air pollution terrain nexus can be much more
complex than the schematic diagrams. Because the atmosphere
conditions, existing terrain conditions, hydrothermal conditions, air
pollutants properties, etc. highly depend on the spatial and temporal
conditions as well as the influences from human beings.
3) There are many models and experiments have been developed or
conducted for monitoring the air pollution or terrain. However, not
all of them can perfectly reflect the air pollution terrain nexus.
Several limitations in this field are due to the complex geographic
and atmospheric conditions. Many limitations, challenges and dif-
ferent uncertainties limit the research. For example, the inability for
completely resolving or modelling the complex terrain; lacking long-
term and effective simulation and prediction; most terrain related
models focus on the geographical issues, without features or func-
tions for air pollution; the accurate monitoring of some air pollution
is complex, etc.
4) This study serves as a stepping stone to understanding the air pol-
lution nexus, supporting and directing future studies. Big data, more
accurate sensors and integrated modelling/simulation with experi-
ment should be the targets for future studies. Other factors, like the
intensity of economic activities or GDP, need to be considered in
future work for more comprehensive understanding. Case studies
should also be conducted in future work, focusing on the specific air
pollution and geographical areas, based on specific models and ex-
periments.
Acknowledgements
This work is supported by the EU supported project Sustainable
Process Integration Laboratory – SPIL (CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/15_003/
0000456), by Czech Republic Operational Programme Research and
Development, Education under a collaboration agreement with Beijing
Normal University and Fudan University; and the International S&T
Cooperation Program of China (YS2017YFGH000562).
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