Recorded presentation7.2
The effect of local circulations on ozone transport in the Houston-Galveston Area during TexAQS II
Monica R. Patel, Univ. of Houston, Houston, TX; and B. Lefer
A driving factor of ozone buildup and transport in the Houston-Galveston Area is due to local circulations, including the sea-land and bay breezes produced by the temperature contrasts between land and the Gulf of Mexico or Galveston Bay during the summer. According to the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ), Houston had over 20 high ozone episode days in the summer of 2006. Pollutant dispersion and transport from a major source area like the Houston Ship Channel (HSC) is of particular importance because it is a major distributor of ozone and its precursors from its many petrochemical refineries to more populated areas of Houston. This study focuses on three high ozone episode days; August 31, September 7, and September 26, 2006 displayed the easterly to southeasterly flow of the bay breeze which transported the ozone and its precursors produced over the HSC to the surrounding Houston area. A number of other measurement platforms were operational during the TexAQS II study including two SODAR datasets from east Houston, surface observations from CAMS locations, and rawinsonde soundings within the HSC, and ozone soundings from UH-Main Campus. Model verification will also be conducted using the meteorological inputs to the UH CMAQ Air Quality model, specifically boundary layer height and local wind circulation in the HSC. Recorded presentation
Session 7, All Other Aspects of Air Pollution Meteorology
Thursday, 24 January 2008, 8:30 AM-9:45 AM, 220
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