Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Significant downward trend of SO2 observed from 2005 to 2010 at a background station in the Yangtze Delta region, China

  • Articles
  • Published:
Science China Chemistry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

SO2 is an important gas in atmosphere with great environmental and climate implications. SO2 emission in China has been receiving great attention as the economy grows and the amount of coal consumption has increased in the past few decades. SO2 has been observed from July 2005 to June 2010 at Linan WMO GAW regional station (30.3 °N, 119.73 °E, 138 m a.s.l.) located in the Yangtze Delta region in eastern China. These observation data are analyzed to understand the trend of regional SO2 background concentration. Strict quality controls are conducted to ensure the temporal comparability of the data. Significant downward trend with −2.4 ppb/yr (P < 0.0001) of surface SO2 is observed from 2005 to 2010, especially after 2008. The average concentration of SO2 from July 2005 to June 2008 is 14.2±3.1 ppb, which is slightly higher than the mean values of 13.5±5.1 ppb during 1999–2000 and is two folds of the average value (7.1±3.1 ppb) from July 2008 to June 2010. More than 50% of the SO2 has been cut down after 2008 in the Yangtze Delta region due to the implementation of stricter emission control measures. The peak SO2 concentration appears around 10 o’clock in the morning after 2009 while appears at night before 2009. These diurnal variations of SO2 might indicate that after 2009, more SO2 is from the vertical exchange process than from the local accumulation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Baek BH, Aneja VP, Tong Q. Chemical coupling between ammonia, acid gases, and fine particles. Environ Pollut, 2004, 129: 89–98

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Seinfeld JH, Pandis SN. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics-From Air Pollution to Climate Change. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley and Sons Inc, 2006

    Google Scholar 

  3. Ward PL. Sulfur dioxide initiates global climate change in four ways. Thin Solid Films, 2009, 517(11): 3188–3203

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Streets DG, Waldhoff ST. Present and future emissions of air pollutants in China: SO2, NOx, and CO. Atmos Environ, 2000, 34: 363–374

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Wang Y, Li J. China’s present situation of coal consumption and future coal demand forecast. Chn Popu Res Environ, 2008, 18(3): 152–

    Google Scholar 

  6. Zhang Q, Streets DG, Carmichael GR, He KB, Huo H, Kannari A, Klimont Z, Park IS, Reddy S, Fu JS, Chen D, Duan L, Lei Y, Wang LT, Yao ZL. Asian emissions in 2006 for the NASA INTEX-B mission. Atmos Chem Phys, 2009, 9: 5131–5153

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Carmichael GR, Ferm M, Adikary S, Ahmad J, Mohan M, Hong MS, Chen L, Fook L, Liu CM, Soedomo M, Tran G, Suksomsank K, Zhao D, Arndt R, Chen LL. Observed regional distribution of sulfur dioxide in Asia. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution, 1995, 85(4): 2289–2294

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Chu PC, Chen Y, Lu S. Atmospheric effects on winter SO2 pollution in Lanzhou, China. Atmospheric Res, 2008, 89:365–373

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Zhang J, Miao H, Ouya Z, Wang X. Ambient air quality trends and driving factor analysis since 1980’s in Beijing. Acta Sci Circumstantiae, 2006, 26(11): 1886–1892

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Ji D, Wang Y, Sun Y, Ma Z. Characteristics of atmospheric SO2 in Beijing. Climatic Environ Res, 2009, 14(1): 69–76

    Google Scholar 

  11. Meng ZY, Ding GA, Xu XB, Xu XD, Yu HQ, Wang SF. Vertical distributions of SO2 and NO2 in the lower atmosphere in Beijing urban areas, China. Sci Total Environ, 2008, 390: 457–466

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Meng ZY, Xu XB, Yan P, Ding GA, Tang J, Lin WL, Xu XD, Wang SF. Characteristics of trace gaseous pollutants at a regional background station in Northern China. Atmos Chem Phys, 2009, 9: 927–936

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Meng ZY, Xu XB, Wang T, Zhang X, Yu XL, Wang SF, Lin WL, Chen YZ, An XQ, Li M. Ambient sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ammonia at ten background and rural sites in China during 2007–2008. Atmos Environ, 2010, 44: 2625–2631

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Lin W, Xu X, Ge B, Zhang X. Characteristics of gaseous pollutants at Gucheng, a rural site southwest of Beijing. J Geophysical Res, 2009, 114: D00G14, doi:10.1029/2008JD010339

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Zhang MY, Wang SJ, Ma GQ, Zhou HZ, Fu J. Sulfur isotopic composition and source identification of atmospheric environment in central Zhejiang, China. Sci China Earth, 2010, 53: 1717–1725

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Lin W, Xu X, Ma Z, Zhao H, Liu X. Characteristics and recent trends of surface SO2 at urban, rural, and background sites in North China: effectiveness of control measures. J Environ Sci, 2011b, 24(1): 34–49

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Larssen T, Solberg S, Lydersen E, Tang D, He Y, Cao J, Liu H, Duan L, Seip HM, Vogt RD, Mulder J, Shao M, Shang H, Zhang X. Acid rain in China, rapid industrialization has put citizens and ecosystems at risk. Environ Sci Technol, 2006, 40(2): 418–425

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Lu Z, Streets DG, Zhang Q, Wang S, Carmichael GR, Cheng YF, Wei C, Chin M, Diehl T, Tan Q. Sulfur dioxide emissions in China and sulfur trends in East Asia since 2000. Atmos Chem Phys, 2010, 10: 6311–6331

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Wang L, Jang C, Zhang Y, Wang K, Zhang Q, Streets D, Fu J, Lei Y, Schreifels J, He K, Hao J, Lam YF, Lin J, Meskhidze N, Voorhees S, Evarts D, Phillips S. Assessment of air quality benefits from national air pollution control policies in China. Part II: Evaluation of air quality predictions and air quality benefits assessment. Atmos Environ, 2010, 44(28): 3449–3457

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Li C, Zhang Q, Krotkov NA, Streets DG, He K, Tsay SC, Gleason JF. Recent large reduction in sulfur dioxide emissions from Chinese power plants observed by the ozone monitoring instrument. Geophys Res Lett, 2010, 37: L08807, doi:10.1029/2010GL042594

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Witte JC, Schoeberl MR, Douglass AR, Gleason JF, Krotkov NA, Gille JC, Pickering KE, Livesey N. Satellite observations of changes in air quality during the 2008 Beijing Olympics and Paralympics. Geophys Res Lett, 2009, 36: L17803, doi:10.1029/2009GL039236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Wang Y, Hao J, McElroy MB, Munger JW, Ma H, Chen D, Nielsen CP. Ozone air quality during the 2008 Beijing Olympics-effectiveness of emission restrictions. Atmos Chem Phys, 2009, 9: 5237–5251

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Zhang XY, Wang YQ, Lin WL, Zhang YM, Zhang XC, Gong S, Zhao P, Yang YQ, Wang JZ, Hou Q, Zhang XL, Che HZ, Guo JP, Li Y. Changes of atmospheric compositions and optical property over Beijing: 2008 olympic monitoring campaign. Bull Am Meteorol Soc, 2009, 90(11):1633–1651

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Wang M, Zhu T, Zheng J, Zhang RY, Zhang SQ, Xie XX, Han YQ, Li Y. Use of a mobile laboratory to evaluate changes in on-road air pollutants during the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics. Atmos Chem Phys, 2009, 9: 8247–8263

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Xin J, Wang Y, Tang G, Wang L, Sun Y, Wang Y, Hu B, Song T, Ji D, Wang W, Li L, Liu G. Variability and reduction of atmospheric pollutants in Beijing and its surrounding area during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Chin Sci Bull, 2010, 55(18): 1937–1944

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Wang T, Nie W, Gao J, Xue LK, Gao XM, Wang XF, Qiu J, Poon CN, Meinardi S, Blake D, Wang SL, Ding AJ, Chai FH, Zhang QZ, Wang WX. Air quality during the 2008 Beijing Olympics: secondary pollutants and regional impact. Atmos Chem Phys, 2010, 10: 7603–7

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Wang M, Zhu T, Zhang JP, Zhang QH, Lin WW, Li Y, Wang ZF. Using a mobile laboratory to characterize the distribution and transport of sulfur dioxide in and around Beijing. Atmos Chem Phys, 2011, 11: 11631–11645

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Lin W, Xu X, Sun J, Liu X, Wang Y. Study of the background concentrations of reactive gases at Jinsha regional atmospheric background station and the impacts of long-range transport. Sci China Earth, 2011, 54(10): 1604–1613

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Xu X, Lin W, Wang T, Yan P, Tang J, Meng Z, Wang Y. Long-term trend of surface ozone at a regional background station in eastern China 1991–2006: Enhanced variability. Atmos Chem Phys, 2008, 8: 2595–2607

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Lin W, Xu X, Zhang X. The Errors in the claimed concentrations of standard gases used in the observation of reactive gases and practical solutions. Environ Chem, 2011a, 30(6): 1–4

    Google Scholar 

  31. Draxler RR, Hess GD. An Overview of the Hysplit_4 modeling system for trajectories, dispersion, and deposition. Aust Meteorol Mag, 1998, 47: 295–308

    Google Scholar 

  32. Lin W, Xu X, Sun J, Li Y, Meng Z. Characteristics of gaseous pollutants at Jinsha, a remote mountain site in central China. SCIENTIA SINICA Chimica, 2011c, 41(1): 136–144

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Hamed A., Birmili W, Joutsensaari J, Mikkonen S, Asmi A, Wehner B, Spindler G, Jaatinen A, Wiedensohler A, Korhonen H, Lehtinen KEJ, Laaksonen A. Changes in the production rate of secondary aerosol particles in Central Europe in view of decreasing SO2 emissions between 1996 and 2006. Atmos Chem Phys, 2010, 10: 1071–1091

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Xu X, Lin W, Yan P, Dai X, Yu X. Long-term changes of acidic gases in China’s Yangtze Delta and northeast plain regions during 1994–2006. Adv Clim Change Res, 2009, 5(Suppl.): 5–10

    Google Scholar 

  35. Zhou X, Luo C, Ding G, Tang J, Liu Q. Preliminary study of background variations of atmospheric ozone and its precursors over eastern China. Sci China Ser B-Chem, 1994, 24(12):1323–1330

    Google Scholar 

  36. Luo C, Ding G, Li X, Tang J, Zhou X. Preliminary analysis and comparison of results in field experiment of Sino-US atmospheric chemical cooperation investigation: PEM-WEST B. Acta Meteorol Sinica, 1998, 56(4): 467–475

    Google Scholar 

  37. Yan P, Li X, Luo C, Xu X, Xiang Y, Ding G, Tang J, Wang M, Yu X. Observational analysis of surface O3, NOx and SO2 in China. Quart. J Appl Meteor, 1997, 8(1), 53-60

    Google Scholar 

  38. Wang T, Wong CH, Cheung VTF, Blake DR, Arimoto R, Baumann K, Tang J, Ding GA, Yu XM, Li YS, Streets DD, Simpson IJ. Relationships of trace gases and aerosols and the emission characteristics at Lin’an, a rural site in eastern China during spring 2001. J Geophys Res, 2004, 109, doi:10:1029/2003JD004119

  39. Wang TF, Cheung VT, Anson M, Li YS. Ozone and related gaseous pollutants in the boundary layer of eastern China: Overview of the recent measurements at a rural site. Geophys Res Lett, 2001, 28(12): 2373–2376

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Urban Planning and Environmental Management, Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, 310012, China

    HuangXiong Qi

  2. Key Laboratory for Atmospheric Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China

    WeiLi Lin & XiaoBin Xu

  3. Center for Atmosphere Watch and Services, Meteorological Observation Centre, China Meteorological Administration, Beijing, 100081, China

    WeiLi Lin

  4. Linan Regional Atmosphere Background Station, Linan, 311307, China

    XiangMing Yu & QianLi Ma

Authors
  1. HuangXiong Qi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. WeiLi Lin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. XiaoBin Xu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. XiangMing Yu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. QianLi Ma
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to WeiLi Lin.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Qi, H., Lin, W., Xu, X. et al. Significant downward trend of SO2 observed from 2005 to 2010 at a background station in the Yangtze Delta region, China. Sci. China Chem. 55, 1451–1458 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-012-4524-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-012-4524-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation