Reports from Air
Quality Research and Contract Projects related to miscellaneous
projects are posted here as PDF files (Help with PDF)
unless otherwise specified. Some reports have companion data files
in various formats.
Assessment of Selected Leak Detection, Sampling, Testing,
Measurement and Monitoring Methods for Estimating Emissions of
Highly Reactive Volatile Organic Compounds from Industrial Cooling
Waters - This report, from the University of Texas at
Austin, summarizes the results of a cooling tower project which
involved the following tasks: (1) evaluation of selected VOC leak
detection methods, (2) evaluation of selected semi-continuous and
continuous water sampling and VOC measurement systems, (3)
evaluation of instruments to continuously measure cooling water
flow rate, and (4) development of a mass-transfer model of VOC
emissions from cooling towers. (September 2004)
Staff Contact: Call Vincent Meiller at 512/239-6041 or
e-mail us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Vincent Meiller” in the subject line.
Flare Waste Gas Flow Rate and Composition Measurement Methodologies
Evaluation Document - This report, by Shell Global
Solutions, evaluates currently available flow measurement and gas
composition measurement techniques; their applicability to the
measurement of waste gas flow and composition in flare systems and
their ability to meet the data quality objectives established by
TCEQ. Additionally, this study evaluates current practices for
controlling assist gas to waste gas ratios in flares. (July
2004)
Staff Contact: Call Vincent Meiller at 512/239-6041 or
e-mail us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Vincent Meiller” in the subject line.
Passive FTIR Phase I Testing of Simulated and Controlled Flare
Systems (Revised) - This report, provided by URS Co.,
evaluates the feasibility of Passive Fourier Transform Infrared
(PFTIR) spectroscopy as a method for measuring flare emissions, and
the use of those measurements in calculating the combustion
efficiency of flares. This report also has
six appendices (zipped PDF files). (June 2004)
Staff Contact: Call Vincent Meiller at 512/239-6041 or
e-mail us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Vincent Meiller” in the subject line.
Data Mining of the Relationship Between Volatile Organic Components
and Transient High Ozone Formation - This interim report,
developed through a grant and provided by staff of the Department
of Chemical Engineering, Clarkson University, describes the use of
data mining with environmental data. The aim is to identify the
relationships between volatile organic components and transient
high ozone formation in the Houston area. The report notes that, in
Houston, short-term (one-hour) sharp increases are observed
followed by a rapid decrease back to typical concentrations. Some
components, such as ethylene, propylene etc., are thought to be the
cause of the transient high-ozone formation based on some
measurements from automatic gas chromatographs. Data mining is
considered a reasonable method of extraction from historic
gas-chromatograph data. As vast historic GC data is available, the
goal is to design a DM process to extract the information from the
data set. (July 2002)
Staff Contact: Call Jim Price at 512/239-1803 or e-mail
us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Jim Price” in the subject line.
Ozone Production Rate and Hydrocarbon Reactivity in Five Urban
Areas: A Cause of High Ozone in Houston - This paper,
written by staff at Brookhaven National Laboratory, discusses
observations of ozone and ozone precursors taken from aircraft
flights over Houston, Nashville, Phoenix, New York, and
Philadelphia. The paper notes the significant differences in high
concentrations of reactive volatile organic compounds in the
Houston area that leads to ozone production rates that are two to
five times higher than in the other 4 cities even though NOx concentrations are comparable. The conclusions
address whether VOC observations are consistent with emission
inventory estimates. (April 2002)
Staff Contact: Call Jim Price at 512/239-1803 or e-mail
us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Jim Price” in the subject line.
Chlorine Chemistry Studies - The following reports are
received from contractors involving a series of projects to address
chlorine chemistry:
- Sensitivity of Urban Ozone Formation to Chlorine Emission
Estimates. Available at Atmospheric Environment
36(32), Oct 2002,
4991-5003.
-
Spatial and Temporal Impacts of Chlorine Chemistry on Ozone
Formation in Southeastern Texas - This report from the
University of Texas Center for Energy and Environmental Resources
describes the Houston-Galveston non-attainment area using chlorine
chemistry and the emission inventory described above. Results show
chlorine chemistry can increase ozone formation as much as 16 ppb
in the morning, but only increases the afternoon peak ozone a few
ppb, even in the presence of VOC upsets. (January 2002)
-
Impact of Chlorine on Ozone Modeling for the Houston Area -
This report from Environ International Corp. provides results from
a project to develop an improved version of the model that can be
used to investigate the role of reactive chlorine emissions; test
the improved model using current TCEQ modeling data bases and use
the results to evaluate the potential impact of reactive chlorine
emissions on ozone formation in the Houston area. (August 2001)
-
Confirming the Presence and Extent of Oxidation by CI in the
Houston Texas Urban Area Using Specific Isoprene Oxidation Products
as Tracers - This report from the University of Miami
provides the results of a series of experiments to determine the
presence and extent of chlorine chemistry in the Houston area. This
report has a
companion data file in Comma-Separated Values (CSV) format.
(August 2001)
-
Impact of Molecular Chlorine Emissions on Ozone Formation in
Southeast Houston - This report, from the University of
Texas at Austin, Department of Chemical Engineering and Center for
Energy and Environmental Resources, provides results of a project
to determine the effect of chlorine on the kinetics of ozone
formation in a mixture representing the atmosphere of a coastal
urban center and to identify hydrocarbon maker species that can
assist in characterizing the extent of chlorine reaction in the gas
phase, using a smog chamber. (August 2001)
-
Incorporation of Chlorine Reactions into the Carbon Bond IV
Mechanism - This report supplements the above-referenced
study. (August 2001)
-
Incorporation of Chlorine Reactions into the Carbon Bond IV
Mechanism: Mechanism Updates and Preliminary Performance
Evaluation - This report provided by the University of
Texas provides details on the updating of the mechanism for the
above project. (August 2001)
-
Emission Inventory for Atomic Chlorine Precursors in Southeast
Texas - This report from the Center for Energy and
Environmental Resources describes spatial and temporal allocations
of the chlorine emissions from significant sources in the
Houston/Galveston and Beaumont/Port Arthur areas, including
volatilization of biocides from cooling towers, volatilization of
disinfecting agents from swimming pools, and point sources. (August
2001)
- Publication: Anthropogenic Sources of Chlorine and Ozone
Formation in Urban Atmospheres. 2000. Available from ACS Journal of Environmental Science &
Technology 34(21): 4470-73.
Staff Contact: Call Jim Neece at 512/239-1524 or e-mail
us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Jim Neece” in the subject line.
NARSTO Model Inter-comparison (NMI) Study - Database Documentation
(Draft) - This report, written by Sonoma Technology, Inc.,
describes the observational and model output data collected for the
North American Research Strategy for Tropospheric Ozone (NARSTO)
model inter-comparison study - a major study comparing regional air
quality modeling systems used for regulatory purposes in the United
States and Canada under the auspices of NARSTO. (August 2001)
Staff Contact: Call Mark Estes at 512/239-6049 or e-mail
us at aqp@tceq.state.tx.us and put
“Attn: Mark Estes” in the subject line.
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