Spatial Distributions of Atmospheric Ammonia in a Rural Area in South Korea and the Associated Impact on a Nearby Urban Area

Abstract

Ammonia (NH3) plays an important role in air quality and atmospheric chemistry, yet studies on the characteristics and impacts of NH3 are limited. Herein, we revealed the spatial distribution of atmospheric NH3, as measured by passive samplers, at three different sites (R1, R2, and R3) in the rural area (livestock environment) of Jeongeup, South Korea, from September 2019 to August 2020. At site R1, the boundary of a large-scale pig farm, dramatically high daily mean concentrations of NH3 were observed (118.7 ppb), whereas sites R2 and R3, located ~1 km from R1, exhibited lower concentrations of 18.2 and 30.4 ppb, respectively. In the rural environment, the monthly NH3 variations showed a peak in June (34.2 ppb), which was significantly higher than in the urban and remote areas. To examine the impact of NH3 from the rural area on a nearby urban area in June 2020, simultaneous measurements were performed using a real-time instrument in Jeonju. When high NH3 events occurred in the urban area in June, the results for the NH3 concentrations and observed meteorological conditions in the rural and urban areas showed that the rural area influenced the NH3 levels in the adjacent urban area.