Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period
Abstract Purpose To explore the impact of anthropogenic emissions reductions on air quality in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak was accompanied by various global lockdown measures. These measures led to a long - term decline in industrial activities and air pollution emissio...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Springer
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Aerosol and Air Quality Research |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s44408-025-00022-0 |
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| author | Qianlin Jiang Xinpeng Wang Lv Luo Longshan Yang Xihang Zhang Jian Zhao Ruijie Xi Qingzhi Zhao |
| author_facet | Qianlin Jiang Xinpeng Wang Lv Luo Longshan Yang Xihang Zhang Jian Zhao Ruijie Xi Qingzhi Zhao |
| author_sort | Qianlin Jiang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Purpose To explore the impact of anthropogenic emissions reductions on air quality in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak was accompanied by various global lockdown measures. These measures led to a long - term decline in industrial activities and air pollution emissions, offering a valuable chance to study the influence of anthropogenic emissions cuts on air quality. Methods Based on the anomaly percentage model, we analyzed the time-varying trends of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), precipitable water vapor (PWV), and temperature (T) in 33 provincial-level administrative regions in China from 2010–2020, explored the spatial distribution of their anomalies from 2019–2020, and selected 170 cities with different population density classes to analyze the changes of related indicators during the epidemic. Results During the COVID-19 period, the anomaly values of PM2.5 fluctuated negatively in all provinces, and 69.7% and 78.8% of the anomaly values of PWV and T fluctuated positively; during the non-COVID-19 period, the anomaly values of PM2.5 fluctuated positively, and the fluctuations of PWV and T were not obvious; PM2.5 decreased significantly in southeastern China, and PWV and T increased significantly. As the urban population density increases, the average anomaly percentages and rates of change of PM2.5, precipitable water vapor (PWV), and T increase. Conclusion The human activity restrictions implemented during the COVID-19 period greatly changed the pollutant emission situation, resulting in an overall decrease in PM2.5 and an overall increase in PWV and T. This fully confirms that there is a strong correlation between the intensity of human activities and the atmospheric air quality, and that the reduction of the intensity of human activities has a positive effect on the improvement of air quality. Graphical abstract |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7a0d8715799a4a71bd2dacdb831f5205 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1680-8584 2071-1409 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Springer |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Aerosol and Air Quality Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-7a0d8715799a4a71bd2dacdb831f52052025-08-20T02:29:50ZengSpringerAerosol and Air Quality Research1680-85842071-14092025-05-0125511410.1007/s44408-025-00022-0Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 PeriodQianlin Jiang0Xinpeng Wang1Lv Luo2Longshan Yang3Xihang Zhang4Jian Zhao5Ruijie Xi6Qingzhi Zhao7Department of Surveying and Mapping Engineering, College of Mining, Guizhou UniversityDepartment of Surveying and Mapping Engineering, College of Mining, Guizhou UniversityDepartment of Surveying and Mapping Engineering, College of Mining, Guizhou UniversityDepartment of Surveying and Mapping Engineering, College of Mining, Guizhou UniversityDepartment of Surveying and Mapping Engineering, College of Mining, Guizhou UniversityChina Railway Tunnel Group Co., LTDSchool of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Wuhan University of TechnologyCollege of Geomatics, Xi’an University of Science and TechnologyAbstract Purpose To explore the impact of anthropogenic emissions reductions on air quality in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak was accompanied by various global lockdown measures. These measures led to a long - term decline in industrial activities and air pollution emissions, offering a valuable chance to study the influence of anthropogenic emissions cuts on air quality. Methods Based on the anomaly percentage model, we analyzed the time-varying trends of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), precipitable water vapor (PWV), and temperature (T) in 33 provincial-level administrative regions in China from 2010–2020, explored the spatial distribution of their anomalies from 2019–2020, and selected 170 cities with different population density classes to analyze the changes of related indicators during the epidemic. Results During the COVID-19 period, the anomaly values of PM2.5 fluctuated negatively in all provinces, and 69.7% and 78.8% of the anomaly values of PWV and T fluctuated positively; during the non-COVID-19 period, the anomaly values of PM2.5 fluctuated positively, and the fluctuations of PWV and T were not obvious; PM2.5 decreased significantly in southeastern China, and PWV and T increased significantly. As the urban population density increases, the average anomaly percentages and rates of change of PM2.5, precipitable water vapor (PWV), and T increase. Conclusion The human activity restrictions implemented during the COVID-19 period greatly changed the pollutant emission situation, resulting in an overall decrease in PM2.5 and an overall increase in PWV and T. This fully confirms that there is a strong correlation between the intensity of human activities and the atmospheric air quality, and that the reduction of the intensity of human activities has a positive effect on the improvement of air quality. Graphical abstracthttps://doi.org/10.1007/s44408-025-00022-0COVID-19Anomaly percentagePM2.5Atmospheric precipitable waterAir quality |
| spellingShingle | Qianlin Jiang Xinpeng Wang Lv Luo Longshan Yang Xihang Zhang Jian Zhao Ruijie Xi Qingzhi Zhao Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period Aerosol and Air Quality Research COVID-19 Anomaly percentage PM2.5 Atmospheric precipitable water Air quality |
| title | Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period |
| title_full | Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period |
| title_fullStr | Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period |
| title_full_unstemmed | Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period |
| title_short | Spatial and Temporal Characterization of PM2.5 and Meteorological Factors in China During the COVID-19 Period |
| title_sort | spatial and temporal characterization of pm2 5 and meteorological factors in china during the covid 19 period |
| topic | COVID-19 Anomaly percentage PM2.5 Atmospheric precipitable water Air quality |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s44408-025-00022-0 |
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