It is now clearly
understood that volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions events from
large petrochemical production and refining facilities along the
Houston Ship Channel have been the primary cause of very high 1-hr
ozone
mixing ratios observed at a surface monitoring stations in and around
Houston.
More than $50 million in research, field programs, and
modeling has been invested in this problem since 2000. New rules and
regulatory monitoring have been implemented to address these problems
and industries have invested in infrared cameras capable of detecting
"events," unknown fugitive sources, and loading and shipping
operational losses of highly volatile organics, all in an effort to
mitigate the rapid
ozone formation that often, but not always, occurs after such releases.
Many parties believed that the shift from 1-hr to 8-hr ozone standard
would ameliorate this problem and that future state implementation plan
(SIP) focus would turn more to "background ozone."
My group's work at the University of North Carolina has instead shown
that the current SIP modeling paradigm is basically incapable of
effectively dealing with these phenomena. Analysis of
observational data and multiple modeling episodes over three years and
application of advanced pseudo-plume process analysis of 4-km and 1-km
CAMx modeling episodes illustrate the complexity of representing these
dominate features and reveal the extreme difficulty of using standard
SIP modeling tools to support effective policies. This work
also suggests that anywhere there is the potential for rapid ambient
atmospheric VOC compositional change, there will be similar transient
high ozone events created. The limited spatial and temporal character
of this high ozone may result in its having a low frequency of
detection by typical urban ozone monitoring networks.
A question to ponder is to what extent do the source behaviors and
atmospheric processes identified in Houston occur in California
communities with similar source categories?
Harvey Jeffries Ph.D., has been a Professor of
Atmospheric Chemistry in the Department of Environmental Sciences and
Engineering in the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (UNC) since 1971. Dr.
Jeffries teaches graduate courses on atmospheric chemistry and
photochemical modeling.
Professor Jeffries research interests focus on gas-phase atmospheric
chemistry, specializing in volatile organic compound photo-oxidation
with oxides of nitrogen to produce ozone, and the mathematical modeling
of urban air chemistry, specifically, the development of numerical
simulation models of photochemistry that become components of large
scale Eulerian models incorporating meteorological and emissions
sub-models. Dr. Jeffries has performed photo-chemical experimental and
simulation research in smog chambers for 40 years and has been the lead
investigator in the creation and implementation of a new photochemical
reaction simulation methodology and model analysis methodology used to
investigate models in state regulatory applications. Now in
collaboration with researchers from the UNC School of Medicine,
Professor Jeffries is conducting gas-phase and particle experiments to
test air quality toxicity effects on human lung cells using newly
designed exposure systems.
Dr. Jeffries has also been active in using these models to plan public
policy for air pollution control. Dr. Jeffries was a scientific advisor
to the North Carolina State regulatory agency for the 1-hour
ozone non-attainment modeling for the North Carolina's State
Implementation Plan (SIP). Dr. Jeffries was in 2000-2003 a
scientific advisor to the Business Coalition for Clean Air Appeal Group
for the Houston Texas 1-hour ozone non-attainment modeling. He was a member (1996-2005) of the US EPA’s Science Advisory
Council, Air Quality Modeling Subcommittee, and a member since 1996 of
the California Air Resources Board's Reactivity Scientific Advisory
Committee. Dr. Jeffries was a founding member (1998) of the
Reactivity Research Working Group, a public/private research
coordinating effort involving US EPA, academia, and industry. He is a member (since 1999) of the Research Advisory
Committee for the Texas Air Research Center at Lamar University in
Beaumont. He was a member (2002-2005) of the
Science Advisory Committee of the Texas Environmental Research
Consortium operated by the Houston Advanced Research Center.
Dr. Jeffries was a member (1995-1997) of the US EPA’s FACA Subcommittee
for the Implementation of New Standards for Ozone, PM, and Regional Haze. He received an Exceptional Leadership Award
from the US EPA (1997) as Co-Chair of Science and Technical Workgroup
for this FACA Subcommittee. Professor Jeffries received the
2003 UNC School of Public Health Bernard G. Greenberg Alumni Endowment
Award for excellence in teaching, research, and service. He
is a member since 2006 of the National Urban Air Toxics Research Center
Science Advisory Panel. In 2007 Professor Jeffries was
awarded a Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) Degree from Eckard College,
St. Petersberg Florida for his contributions to science and public
service.
For information on this seminar please contact:
Dongmin Luo, Ph.D., P.E. at (916) 324-8496 or send email to: luo@arb.ca.gov
For information
on this Series please contact:
Peter Mathews at (916) 323-8711or send email to: pmathews@arb.ca.gov
For
a complete listing of the ARB Chairman's Series and the related
documentation for
each one of the series please
check this page
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