An application and evaluation of the CAL3QHC model for predicting carbon monoxide concentrations from motor vehicles near a roadway intersection in Muscat, Oman

Sabah A. Abdul-Wahab*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

24 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The CAL3QHC model was used to predict carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations from motor vehicles at an existing urban intersection (Star Cinema in Muscat area, Oman). The CO concentrations predicted from the model were compared with those measured in the field. Predicted average CO concentrations were found to compare favorably with measured values obtained at all eight receptors considered within the modeled intersection. In general, the comparison indicates good agreement with some underprediction for CO. For receptor 6, the model overpredicts the average CO concentration. This overprediction is associated with the presence of trees and green area in the location of receptor 6. In general, the measurements and the model results indicated that the highest CO concentrations were found to occur close to the intersection and, hence, a decrease in the concentration levels was seen as the distance from the road increased. The results indicated that the levels of CO were well below the ambient air quality standard and that probably no health risk was present in areas adjacent to the star cinema intersection. However, the predicted worst-case 1-h CO concentrations assuming inversion atmospheric stability conditions (class F) and wind speed of 1 m/s indicated that the levels of CO were close to or higher than the Oman's National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) value of 35 ppm at all receptors considered. The results of this study are useful in transport development and traffic management planning.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)372-382
Number of pages11
JournalEnvironmental Management
Volume34
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2004

Keywords

  • CAL3QHC
  • Carbon monoxide (CO)
  • Motor vehicles
  • Road traffic
  • Roadway intersections
  • Urban air pollution

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Global and Planetary Change
  • Ecology
  • Pollution

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'An application and evaluation of the CAL3QHC model for predicting carbon monoxide concentrations from motor vehicles near a roadway intersection in Muscat, Oman'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this