|
| SOLE SOURCE PROPOSAL |
|
1.
|
"Vehicle-to-Grid Demonstration Project: Grid Regulation Ancillary
Service with a Battery Electric Vehicle," A. C. Propulsion, $164,871 |
| |
Opposition to California's Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate is based
in a large part on the cost premium for ZEVs over conventional vehicles, which leads to claims that emission
control costs are excessively high. The proposed project would develop and demonstrate technology and systems that
allow an electric vehicle to create value by deploying the vehicle's power systems to perform ancillary services
for the power grid operator. This would lower the cost for ZEV ownership and ease or remove the argument that
the associated emission reductions are too costly. The project's objective is to demonstrate the feasibility
and practicality of electric-vehicle-based grid services, and to assess the economic value based on real operating
data and real market prices for the service being provided. The project will install communications and control
equipment into an existing battery-powered ZEV. It would also develop the infrastructure and algorithms
to be used on the vehicle and by the power grid operator to demonstrate the effectiveness of such vehicles
for absorbing and supplying power for grid regulation purposes. The results should provide confidence that effective
power grid regulation can be accomplished, and that the value provided by the vehicle owner can be used
to reduce the effective cost of ZEV ownership. |
| INTERAGENCY PROPOSALS |
|
2.
|
"Impact of NOx Surface Reactions on the Formation of Particles and
Ozone, and the Development of Control Strategy Options," University of California, Irvine, $400,003 |
| |
The development of effective control strategies for ozone, particles, and
associated photochemical air pollutants depends on an accurate description of the atmospheric chemistry of
volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) in air quality models. While the gas-phase
chemistry is reasonably well understood, the heterogeneous gas-liquid chemistry, especially for NOx is still
not understood. As a result, current air quality models either do not include heterogeneous NOx
chemistry at all, or treat it inaccurately. This project will address two key heterogeneous NOx reactions
that are likely to be important in polluted airsheds in California: the hydrolysis of nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
on wet surfaces and the reaction of nitric oxide (NO) with nitric acid on wet surfaces. The first reaction
plays a pivotal role in the initiation of smog formation by producing nitrous acid, which is the major source
of ozone-forming hydroxyl radicals at dawn. The second reaction reactivates deposited nitric acid back into photochemically
active forms. Previously, the formation of nitric acid was believed to be an end product of the
oxidation processes of NOx in the atmosphere. This "renoxification" of nitric acid could alter the relative
effectiveness of VOC and NOx controls on the photochemical air pollutant levels. The investigators will quantify
the kinetics and mechanisms of the heterogeneous NOx reactions described above and incorporate these descriptions
into air quality models. The improved models will allow accurate assessments of the impact of heterogeneous
NOx chemistry on the formation of photochemical air pollutants and further the development of effective air
pollution control strategies. |
|
3.
|
"Development and Evaluation of Gas-Phase Atmospheric Reaction Mechanisms
for Low NOx Conditions," University of California, Riverside, $79,884 |
| |
The gas-phase chemical reaction mechanism is a critical component in air
quality simulation models. The
SAPRC-99 mechanism recently developed by Dr. William Carter at the University of California at Riverside (UCR), includes
state-of-the-science chemistry and has been used in many air quality modeling applications. It was employed
to develop the reactivity scales for volatile organic compounds for California's aerosol coatings regulations.
However, this mechanism was developed and evaluated for high-NOx conditions typical of urban areas, so it may
not be appropriate for low-NOx conditions typical of rural and remote areas. This project is intended to evaluate and
adapt the SAPRC-99 mechanism for accuracy in model prediction under low-NOx conditions using existing environmental
chamber data. Based on the results of the initial evaluation, selected chamber experiments will be carried
out using the new "next-generation" environmental chamber being constructed at UCR for low NOx evaluation.
The mechanisms will be modified as appropriate based on the results of this evaluation. The outcome of this effort
will improve our understanding of atmospheric chemistry in rural and remote areas, and allow more accurate air
quality simulation under low-NOX conditions. |
|
4.
|
"Source Apportionment of Fine and Ultrafine Particles in California,"
University of California, Davis,
$315,000 |
| |
Airborne particulate matter (PM) has been implicated in increased mortality.
A recent estimate is that approximately 20,000 Californians die prematurely each year due to PM. Reducing fine
particulate pollution is one of the most difficult environmental challenges facing California because of the
great diversity of sources and chemical species involved. Developing a technically defensible PM control program
requires identifying the contribution of each source type to the measured PM concentrations, and then estimating
the air quality benefits associated with implementing a suite of emission controls. Source apportionment techniques
calculate the contribution that different sources make to airborne particulate matter concentrations. In this
project, the investigator will perform source apportionment of fine particles (PM2.5), including ultrafine particles.
Particle samples collected during several major ambient field monitoring and source sampling studies will be analyzed
for the quantity of unique chemical tracers that can be used in a source apportionment analysis. Apportionment
of the particulate matter collected from these studies would effectively reveal the contribution that different
sources make to fine and ultrafine particle concentrations. Because fine particles have been implicated in serious
health effects, a better understanding of source contributions to fine particle concentrations will enable decision-makers
to formulate effective control strategies to protect public health. |
|
5.
|
"Correlation between Solids Content and Hiding as it Relates to
Calculation of VOC Content in Architectural Coatings," California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo,
$99,932 |
| |
Architectural coatings are a significant source of VOC emissions in California.
In recent years, water-based coatings have been replacing solvent-based coatings in many application areas. Paint
cans must indicate their VOC content, which facilitates consumer comparison of the VOC content of different
brands. The U.S. EPA's rules define "regulatory VOC," by which the VOC of coating products is computed
on a "less water and exempt compounds basis." However, for coatings with a high percentage of water,
the regulatory VOC can be much higher than the actual VOC. The regulatory definition implies that the volume
of solids is directly related to the ability of the applied coating to "hide" the underlying substrate.
If a particular coating does not "hide" sufficiently, the consumer will repeat the application with
additional paint. However, a low-solids water-based coating with a high "regulatory VOC" can provide
the same hiding ability as a high-solids solvent-based coating with higher "actual VOC." In
that case, a consumer looking for a low VOC paint might buy a can that would emit more VOCs on application.
This project will investigate the relationship between hiding the underlying substrate and the type and amount
of solids for selected classes of water-based architectural coatings. Based on the results, ARB staff may be able
to justify an alternative VOC calculation procedure for labeling paint cans. Ultimately, consumers would have
better information to buy paint that will emit less VOCs for a given application. |
| INTERIM REPORT |
|
6.
|
"Near -Source Exposure to Crystalline Silica in California: Pilot
Study," University of California, Davis, $249,970, Contract No. 98-348 |
| |
Crystalline silica is currently under consideration as a toxic air contaminant
(TAC) due to its potential human carcinogenic (lung cancer) and non-carcinogenic (bronchitis, silicosis) health
effects. Quantitative determination of crystalline silica levels in air samples downwind of industrial sources
is required to determine the general population's exposure to this potentially toxic air contaminant. A pilot
study was carried out at a sand and gravel plant as a representative crystalline silica stationary source.
The pilot study's objectives were to identify the best sampling and analytical techniques for quantifying
crystalline silica that can distinguish stationary source crystalline silica from background sources of fugitive
dust, and to determine the crystalline silica levels as a function of distance downwind of a stationary
source in California. The pilot study results indicate that the downwind crystalline silica and particulate
matter levels were very consistent at a given sampling location from day-to-day, and were significantly higher
than the upwind levels. The pilot study results highlight several sampling and analytical issues that should be
considered in future efforts to quantify the crystalline silica levels downwind of large non-point sources such
as sand and gravel plants, quarries, and construction sites. The results also clearly indicate that further
field sampling near crystalline silica sources is necessary in order to quantify actual emissions from these sources.
Thus, before crystalline silica is listed as a TAC by the Board, significant more work needs to be done to
understand the potential impacts of crystalline silica sources on human health. |
| FINAL REPORTS |
|
7.
|
"Whole Ecosystem Measurements of Biogenic Hydrocarbon Emissions,"
University of California, Berkeley, $150,000, Contract No. 98-328 |
| |
Throughout California, dense pine forests dominate the vegetation cover
at higher elevations, resulting in substantial biogenic hydrocarbon emissions. The ARB is thus interested in determining
the volume and composition of biogenic emission inventories for pine ecosystems. Pine emissions of methyl butenol
is equivalent to isoprene emissions from oaks. We have had no data for either pine ecosystems or ambient flux
to validate the model for any ecosystem. Therefore, the University of California at Berkeley used a leaf cuvette
method to gather needle level emission factors. They also used a relaxed eddy accumulation flux method and a chilled
gas chromatography flame ionization detection (GC-FID) to provide validated data at the canopy level. The
seasonal variations in these data are presented in this final report. Results indicate that seasonal and plant
age may be important to ecosystem emissions and net effects. The larger emission inventories that likely exist
imply that the ARB may have to improve ozone and particulate matter simulations. |
|
8.
|
"Historical-scale Biochemical Markers of Oxidant Injury and Exposure
in Pine", University of California, Davis, $145,075, Contract No. 97-309 |
| |
Ambient ozone is a contributing factor to the decline of ponderosa pine
trees throughout California. Studies to date have identified alterations in needle biochemistry and physiology
responses, but no reliable measures have been identified for wood. This would help determine if trees in a
given forest are adversely affected by ambient ozone. The objective of this project was to conduct biochemical
analyses on increment cores from pine trees in California that have been exposed to different concentrations
of ambient ozone. Investigators usually evaluate injury to foliage, which is the primary site of ozone
uptake, in order to assess short-term ozone effects on trees. However,
ozone-damaged pine needles are commonly lost after three or more years of exposure and cannot be evaluated
to assess long-term ozone impacts. We could better understand the mechanism of ozone-caused injury to pines
over multi-decade timeframes if reliable biochemical markers in tree-wood could be identified. In the
first phase of the study, the contractor examined tree cores from seven sites in the San Bernardino
National Forest. Analyses
of 50-biochemical markers were conducted using pyrolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to evaluate
core samples of wood representing pre- and post-1945 growth periods. In the second phase of the project,
tree cores from seven sites in the Sierra Nevada were examined. Biochemical analyses of wood from trees
along
a north-to-south, increasing gradient of ozone exposure were consistent with ozone-damaged and undamaged
pines in the San Bernardino National Forest. The results of this study suggest that selected biochemical
markers in wood qualitatively corroborate visual analyses of foliar injury in native pines. Further work is
needed to refine current protocols and to assure the specificity of observed responses to ambient
ozone. |
|
