American Chemical Society: As urban residents know, air quality is a big deal. When local
pollution levels go up, the associated health risks also increase,
especially for children and seniors. But air pollution varies widely
over the course of a day and by location, even within the same city. Now
scientists, reporting in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology, have used smartphone and sensing technology to better pinpoint where and when pollution is at its worst.
Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen and colleagues note that many studies have
investigated people’s exposure to air pollution, which is associated
with respiratory and cardiovascular problems. But they usually create a
picture of exposure based on air pollution levels outside people’s
homes. This approach ignores big differences in air quality in school
and work environments. It also ignores spikes in pollution that happen
over the course of the day such as during rush hour. Nieuwenhuijsen’s
team wanted to test technology’s ability to fill in these gaps.
The researchers equipped more than 50 school children with
smartphones that could track their location and physical activity. The
children also received sensors that continuously measured the ambient
levels of black carbon, a component of soot. Although most children
spent less than 4 percent of their day traveling to and from school,
commuting contributed to 13 percent of their total potential black
carbon exposure. The researchers conclude that mobile technologies could
contribute valuable new insights into air pollution exposure.
"Variability in
and Agreement between Modelled and Personal Continuously Measured Black
Carbon Levels using Novel Smartphone and Sensor Technologies"
Environmental Science & Technology