Variation of particle concentrations and environmental noise on the urban neighbourhood scale

Particulate air pollution and environmental noise received increased attention within the environmental health community during recent years due to their potential impacts on human health. In this study the spatio-temporal variation of noise and particles was estimated by a short set of mobile measurements within an urban neighbourhood in Essen, Germany. Particle concentrations (PM1 and PMcoarse = PM10 − PM1) were measured by an optical particle counter continuously along the measurement route while environmental noise was measured at fixed points on the same route. Additionally, wind and turbulence parameters were gathered above rooftop height and within an urban street canyon. The spatial distribution of noise was very homogeneous while the distribution of particle concentrations turned out to be rather inhomogeneous. The spatial correlation between noise and particles was found to be poor for PMcoarse during all measurements. However, for PM1 and noise a moderate positive correlation (r 0.5) emerged under conditions of weak turbulent atmospheric mixing. The spatio-temporal covariation between particles and noise is believed to be more evident for ultrafine (<100 nm) particles.