Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements
Abstract Aircraft emissions of (ultra)fine particles during landing and take-off operations pose increasing human health hazards for airport employees and near-airport communities. Measurements of in-operation aircraft are therefore crucial for characterizing real-world aircraft emissions, and their...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-06-01
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| Series: | npj Climate and Atmospheric Science |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41612-025-01095-9 |
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| author | Jeff Maes Spyros Bezantakos Luccas K. Kavabata George Biskos Irene C. Dedoussi |
| author_facet | Jeff Maes Spyros Bezantakos Luccas K. Kavabata George Biskos Irene C. Dedoussi |
| author_sort | Jeff Maes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Aircraft emissions of (ultra)fine particles during landing and take-off operations pose increasing human health hazards for airport employees and near-airport communities. Measurements of in-operation aircraft are therefore crucial for characterizing real-world aircraft emissions, and their variability. In this work, we develop an approach that enables the gathering of large quantities of data on real-world aircraft-specific emissions. We use three types of portable PM sensors located ca. 200 m downwind of an operational runway at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, over different seasons, to characterize the plumes from ca. 500 specific operations covering most aircraft types of the global flying fleet. High concentration peaks (in the order of 106 particles/cm3) of sub-25 nm particles are observed in the near field. While departure plumes exhibit higher particle number concentrations than arrival plumes, the values do not necessarily scale with aircraft size or engine thrust rating. We find large variability among aircraft types and engine models, highlighting the importance of incorporating real-world observations when assessing the impacts of aviation on the atmospheric composition and human health. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-527fdfea835f4d1797ecbae215cf72be |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2397-3722 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | npj Climate and Atmospheric Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-527fdfea835f4d1797ecbae215cf72be2025-08-20T02:10:35ZengNature Portfolionpj Climate and Atmospheric Science2397-37222025-06-018111210.1038/s41612-025-01095-9Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurementsJeff Maes0Spyros Bezantakos1Luccas K. Kavabata2George Biskos3Irene C. Dedoussi4Operations & Environment Section, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of TechnologyClimate and Atmosphere Research Center, The Cyprus InstituteOperations & Environment Section, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of TechnologyClimate and Atmosphere Research Center, The Cyprus InstituteOperations & Environment Section, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of TechnologyAbstract Aircraft emissions of (ultra)fine particles during landing and take-off operations pose increasing human health hazards for airport employees and near-airport communities. Measurements of in-operation aircraft are therefore crucial for characterizing real-world aircraft emissions, and their variability. In this work, we develop an approach that enables the gathering of large quantities of data on real-world aircraft-specific emissions. We use three types of portable PM sensors located ca. 200 m downwind of an operational runway at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, over different seasons, to characterize the plumes from ca. 500 specific operations covering most aircraft types of the global flying fleet. High concentration peaks (in the order of 106 particles/cm3) of sub-25 nm particles are observed in the near field. While departure plumes exhibit higher particle number concentrations than arrival plumes, the values do not necessarily scale with aircraft size or engine thrust rating. We find large variability among aircraft types and engine models, highlighting the importance of incorporating real-world observations when assessing the impacts of aviation on the atmospheric composition and human health.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41612-025-01095-9 |
| spellingShingle | Jeff Maes Spyros Bezantakos Luccas K. Kavabata George Biskos Irene C. Dedoussi Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements npj Climate and Atmospheric Science |
| title | Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements |
| title_full | Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements |
| title_fullStr | Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements |
| title_full_unstemmed | Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements |
| title_short | Aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real-world near runway measurements |
| title_sort | aircraft emissions of ultrafine particles characterized by real world near runway measurements |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41612-025-01095-9 |
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