Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region

Air pollution monitoring in industrial regions like Moravia-Silesia faces challenges due to complex environmental conditions. Low-cost sensors offer a promising, cost-effective alternative for supplementing data from regulatory-grade air quality monitoring stations. This study evaluates the accuracy...

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Main Authors: Václav Nevrlý, Michal Dostál, Petr Bitala, Vít Klečka, Jiří Sléžka, Pavel Polách, Katarína Nevrlá, Melánie Barabášová, Růžena Langová, Šárka Bernatíková, Barbora Martiníková, Michal Vašinek, Adam Nevrlý, Milan Lazecký, Jan Suchánek, Hana Chaloupecká, David Kiča, Jan Wild
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-11-01
Series:Atmosphere
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/11/1326
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author Václav Nevrlý
Michal Dostál
Petr Bitala
Vít Klečka
Jiří Sléžka
Pavel Polách
Katarína Nevrlá
Melánie Barabášová
Růžena Langová
Šárka Bernatíková
Barbora Martiníková
Michal Vašinek
Adam Nevrlý
Milan Lazecký
Jan Suchánek
Hana Chaloupecká
David Kiča
Jan Wild
author_facet Václav Nevrlý
Michal Dostál
Petr Bitala
Vít Klečka
Jiří Sléžka
Pavel Polách
Katarína Nevrlá
Melánie Barabášová
Růžena Langová
Šárka Bernatíková
Barbora Martiníková
Michal Vašinek
Adam Nevrlý
Milan Lazecký
Jan Suchánek
Hana Chaloupecká
David Kiča
Jan Wild
author_sort Václav Nevrlý
collection DOAJ
description Air pollution monitoring in industrial regions like Moravia-Silesia faces challenges due to complex environmental conditions. Low-cost sensors offer a promising, cost-effective alternative for supplementing data from regulatory-grade air quality monitoring stations. This study evaluates the accuracy and reliability of a prototype node containing low-cost sensors for carbon monoxide (CO) and particulate matter (PM), specifically tailored for the local conditions of the Moravian-Silesian Region during winter and spring periods. An analysis of the reference data observed during the winter evaluation period showed a strong positive correlation between PM, CO, and <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>NO</mi><mn>2</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> concentrations, attributable to common pollution sources under low ambient temperature conditions and increased local heating activity. The Sensirion SPS30 sensor exhibited high linearity during the winter period but showed a systematic positive bias in <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>PM</mi><mn>10</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> readings during Polish smog episodes, likely due to fine particles from domestic heating. Conversely, during Saharan dust storm episodes, the sensor showed a negative bias, underestimating <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>PM</mi><mn>10</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> levels due to the prevalence of coarse particles. Calibration adjustments, based on the <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>PM</mi><mn>1</mn></msub><msub><mi>/PM</mi><mn>10</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> ratio derived from Alphasense OPC-N3 data, were initially explored to reduce these biases. For the first time, this study quantifies the influence of particle size distribution on the SPS30 sensor’s response during smog episodes of varying origin, under the given local and seasonal conditions. In addition to sensor evaluation, we analyzed the potential use of data from the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) as an alternative to increasing sensor complexity. Our findings suggest that, with appropriate calibration, selected low-cost sensors can provide reliable data for monitoring air pollution episodes in the Moravian-Silesian Region and may also be used for future adjustments of CAMS model predictions.
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spelling doaj-art-ecd25da5a59b4fe9a82f06ffc5eee4672025-08-20T02:07:57ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332024-11-011511132610.3390/atmos15111326Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian RegionVáclav Nevrlý0Michal Dostál1Petr Bitala2Vít Klečka3Jiří Sléžka4Pavel Polách5Katarína Nevrlá6Melánie Barabášová7Růžena Langová8Šárka Bernatíková9Barbora Martiníková10Michal Vašinek11Adam Nevrlý12Milan Lazecký13Jan Suchánek14Hana Chaloupecká15David Kiča16Jan Wild17Faculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicFaculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, 17. Listopadu 15/2172, 708 00 Ostrava-Poruba, Czech RepublicFaculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, 17. Listopadu 15/2172, 708 00 Ostrava-Poruba, Czech RepublicIT4Innovations, VSB—Technical University of Ostrava, 17. Listopadu 15/2172, 708 00 Ostrava-Poruba, Czech RepublicJ. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 8, 182 23 Praha, Czech RepublicInstitute of Thermomechanics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 5, 8, 182 00 Praha, Czech RepublicPublic Health Institute Ostrava, Partyzánské Náměstí 2633/7, Moravská Ostrava, 702 00 Ostrava, Czech RepublicFaculty of Safety Engineering, VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, Lumírova 630/13, 700 30 Ostrava-Výškovice, Czech RepublicAir pollution monitoring in industrial regions like Moravia-Silesia faces challenges due to complex environmental conditions. Low-cost sensors offer a promising, cost-effective alternative for supplementing data from regulatory-grade air quality monitoring stations. This study evaluates the accuracy and reliability of a prototype node containing low-cost sensors for carbon monoxide (CO) and particulate matter (PM), specifically tailored for the local conditions of the Moravian-Silesian Region during winter and spring periods. An analysis of the reference data observed during the winter evaluation period showed a strong positive correlation between PM, CO, and <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>NO</mi><mn>2</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> concentrations, attributable to common pollution sources under low ambient temperature conditions and increased local heating activity. The Sensirion SPS30 sensor exhibited high linearity during the winter period but showed a systematic positive bias in <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>PM</mi><mn>10</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> readings during Polish smog episodes, likely due to fine particles from domestic heating. Conversely, during Saharan dust storm episodes, the sensor showed a negative bias, underestimating <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>PM</mi><mn>10</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> levels due to the prevalence of coarse particles. Calibration adjustments, based on the <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>PM</mi><mn>1</mn></msub><msub><mi>/PM</mi><mn>10</mn></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> ratio derived from Alphasense OPC-N3 data, were initially explored to reduce these biases. For the first time, this study quantifies the influence of particle size distribution on the SPS30 sensor’s response during smog episodes of varying origin, under the given local and seasonal conditions. In addition to sensor evaluation, we analyzed the potential use of data from the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) as an alternative to increasing sensor complexity. Our findings suggest that, with appropriate calibration, selected low-cost sensors can provide reliable data for monitoring air pollution episodes in the Moravian-Silesian Region and may also be used for future adjustments of CAMS model predictions.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/11/1326air qualitylow-cost sensorsPolish smogSaharan dust stormlinear regression
spellingShingle Václav Nevrlý
Michal Dostál
Petr Bitala
Vít Klečka
Jiří Sléžka
Pavel Polách
Katarína Nevrlá
Melánie Barabášová
Růžena Langová
Šárka Bernatíková
Barbora Martiníková
Michal Vašinek
Adam Nevrlý
Milan Lazecký
Jan Suchánek
Hana Chaloupecká
David Kiča
Jan Wild
Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region
Atmosphere
air quality
low-cost sensors
Polish smog
Saharan dust storm
linear regression
title Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region
title_full Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region
title_fullStr Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region
title_full_unstemmed Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region
title_short Varying Performance of Low-Cost Sensors During Seasonal Smog Events in Moravian-Silesian Region
title_sort varying performance of low cost sensors during seasonal smog events in moravian silesian region
topic air quality
low-cost sensors
Polish smog
Saharan dust storm
linear regression
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/11/1326
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