Impact Assessment of Pollutant Emissions in the Atmosphere from a Power Plant over a Complex Terrain and under Unsteady Winds

Abstract

Abstract:The development of a natural gas-fired tri-generation power plant (520 MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbines + 58 MW Tri-generation) in the Republic of San Marino, a small independent country in Northern Italy, is under assessment. This work investigates the impact of atmospheric emissions of NO x by the plant, under the Italian and European regulatory framework. The impact assessment was performed by the means of the Aria Industry package, including the 3D Lagrangian stochastic particle dispersion model SPRAY, the diagnostic meteorological model SWIFT, and the turbulence model SURFPRO (Aria Technologies, France, and Arianet, Italy). The Republic of San Marino is almost completely mountainous, 10 km west of the Adriatic Sea and affected by land-sea breeze circulation. SPRAY is suitable for simulations under non-homogenous and non-stationary conditions, over a complex topography. The emission scenario included both a worst-case meteorological condition and three 10-day periods representative of typical atmospheric conditions for 2014. The simulated NO x concentrations were compared with the regulatory air quality limits. Notwithstanding the high emission rate, the simulation showed a spatially confined environmental impact, with only a single NO x peak at ground where the plume hits the hillside of the Mount Titano (749 m a.s.l.), 5 km west of the future power plant.

Impact of COVID‐19 lockdown on the elemental profile of PM10 present in the ambient aerosol of an educational institute in Kolkata, India

“…This phenomenon is further enhanced due to the stagnation of aerosol in the PT sampling phase mainly due to low temperature and low mixing layers closer to the ground which was also described in a study by Ghermandi et al. ( 2017 ).…”

Modeling Pollutant Emissions: Influence of Two Heat and Power Plants on Urban Air Quality

“…The area with a concentration of 0.6 µg/m, which constitutes 1.5% of the reference value, is 40 µg/m 3 . Ghermandi et al also showed that the limit values were not exceeded during their computer analysis of NO2 emissions from a CHP plant in San Marino [39]. The dispersion of NO2 pollutants also coincided with the wind rose for Lodz for 2019.…”

Comment on egusphere-2023-2641

“…In particular, during the winter months, the Po Valley has specific meteorological characteristics, such as stable atmospheric conditions and frequent low wind speeds, which contribute to the occurrence of thermal inversions. These atmospheric phenomena can hinder the dispersion of air pollutants in the region, as reported by many studies, such as Bigi et al (2012); Pernigotti et al (2012a, b); Ghermandi et al (2017). In addition, the Po Valley is geographically bounded by the Apennines to the south and the Alps to the north, which act as natural barriers that further limit the movement of pollutants.…”