Characteristics and Sources of Air Pollution in Southern Shanxi Province

Abstract

To study the characteristics and potential sources region of air pollution in Jincheng, Southern Shanxi Province, the potential source areas and transport routes of pollutants were investigated using AQI (air quality index) data from 2018 to 2020 and National Centers for Environmental (NCEP) reanalysis data, combined with cluster analysis, potential source contribution function (PSCF), and concentration weight trajectory (CWT). The results show that the AQI of Jincheng in wintertime from 2018 to 2020 showed a “gradual N-shaped decline” trend. The primary pollutants throughout the year were particulate pollutants PM10 and PM2.5, and the number of days in which O3 was the primary pollutant accounted for about 40%. The trajectory cluster analysis showed that there were eight types of transmission trajectories in winter. The northwest trajectories of categories 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7 accounted for 52.84%, the northerly trajectories of categories 5 and 6 accounted for 17.61%, and the southeast trajectories of category 8 accounted for 1.14%. The trajectory results were basically consistent with the geographical location and monsoon characteristics of Jincheng. The potential pollution source areas with great impact on AQI in Jincheng were mainly located in Northern Shanxi, Luliang and Linfen in Shanxi, and Xingtai and Handan in Hebei. Fenwei River Valley was another significant source of air pollution in Jincheng. Therefore, the pollution of Jincheng was affected by both pollution transmission and local exhaust sources. The impact of air pollution was mutual, and the findings from this research could be helpful for building an effective joint mechanism for environmental control in Jincheng.