1 AIT Asian Institute of Technology

Optimum siting of ambient air monitors

AuthorModak, Prasad M.
Call NumberAIT Diss. no. EV-84-1
Subject(s)Air quality management
NoteA dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Engineering, School of Environment, Resources and Development
PublisherAsian Institute of Technology
AbstractPast studies on the optimization of Air Quality Monitoring Networks (AQMN) have neglected the issues of multiple objectives and multiple pollutants. These issues are very basic and important for any practical AQMN design. This research therefore addresses to this problem and contributes several original methodologies and formulations. In this research, an algorithm based on the Minimum Spanning Tree (MST) is developed to find a joint solution to the problem of optimum monitor density and monitor configuration. The primary interest of the MST algorithm is to represent the regionwide air quality patterns at a minimum of an overlap. As an extension of this method, a procedure for the 'safe' AQMN design has been developed, to account for the uncertainties in the simulated air quality concentrations. Further, a concept of probabilistic optimization of AQMN has also been introduced . Two approaches have been developed for the incorporation of multiple objectives. The first makes use of the utility function (U approach) and other incorporates on the principles of sequential interactive compromise (S approach). These algorithms, which are based on the ideas of the MST, essentially improve the interests of the associated objectives (such as compliance and/or estimation of pollution dose to population) by compromising on the reliability of, pattern representation. Two approaches have been developed for the incorporation of multiple pollutants, namely the index-oriented approach and the pareto optimal method . Since, both the index and the pareto optimal approaches are essntially the extensions of S and U methods, a simultaneous consideration of multiple objectives and multiple pollutants is possible. As an illustration to the proposed methodologies, a motivational example of Taipei City, Taiwan has been considered. Air quality simulations for the pollutants of interest are necessary for the optimization algorithms developed in this research . These simulations should be ideally done with the help of idealized air quality diffusion models, based on the information on the emissions and the meteorological parameters. Since this information was not available for the Taipei City case, a new method, which uses the data at the existing monitoring network was developed. This method, called ' vector weighing function method ' is another important contribution in this research.
Year1984
TypeDissertation
SchoolSchool of Environment, Resources, and Development
DepartmentDepartment of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC))
Academic Program/FoSEnvironmental Engineering and Management (EV)
Chairperson(s)Lohani, B.N.
Examination Committee(s)I, Fude ;Huynh, Ngoc Phien ;Hoshi, K. ;Rossano, Emeritus A.T.
Scholarship Donor(s)The Government of Japan
DegreeThesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1984


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