Spatiotemporal Analysis of Black Carbon Sources: Case of Santiago, Chile, under SARS-CoV-2 Lockdowns

Carla Adasme, Ana María Villalobos and Héctor Jorquera ()
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Carla Adasme: Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Bioprocesos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, Chile
Ana María Villalobos: Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Bioprocesos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, Chile
Héctor Jorquera: Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Bioprocesos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, Chile

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 24, 1-20

Abstract: Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has temporarily decreased black carbon emissions worldwide. The use of multi-wavelength aethalometers provides a quantitative apportionment of black carbon (BC) from fossil fuels (BC ff ) and wood-burning sources (BC wb ). However, this apportionment is aggregated: local and non-local BC sources are lumped together in the aethalometer results. Methods: We propose a spatiotemporal analysis of BC results along with meteorological data, using a fuzzy clustering approach, to resolve local and non-local BC contributions. We apply this methodology to BC measurements taken at an urban site in Santiago, Chile, from March through December 2020, including lockdown periods of different intensities. Results: BC ff accounts for 85% of total BC; there was up to an 80% reduction in total BC during the most restrictive lockdowns (April–June); the reduction was 40–50% in periods with less restrictive lockdowns. The new methodology can apportion BC ff and BC wb into local and non-local contributions; local traffic (wood burning) sources account for 66% (86%) of BC ff (BC wb ). Conclusions: The intensive lockdowns brought down ambient BC across the city. The proposed fuzzy clustering methodology can resolve local and non-local contributions to BC in urban zones.

Keywords: black carbon; aethalometer model; spatiotemporal patterns; fuzzy clustering; FUSTA (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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