SEASONAL MEASUREMENTS OF AIR POLLUTION FROM PETROL CARS IN THE CITY OF THESSALONIKI IN 2005

摘要

Air pollution in a modern city has become a serious environmental problem because of the combined effects of various pollutants upon the physical and mental health of citizens and the quality of urban life in general. Among the sources of pollution the car traffic is of main importance, in particular the presence alone of moving and stationary vehicles, their tailpipe gases and the associated traffic noise. The main emissions from spark ignition car engines has been re-evaluated seasonally for the period 2004-2005 in the city of Thessaloniki by close monitoring of the following tailpipe pollutants, both at idle and at 2000 rpm: carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO_2), oxygen (O_2) and hydrocarbons (HC). The present paper reconfirms the presence of a small number of gross car polluters in the urban environment of the Greek cities. In addition, a set of sensory observations, i.e. aural and nasal, has been also acquired simultaneously from vehicles under test. Based on the latter, a novel emission control method for the detection of gross polluters is examined.