Vehicular emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from a tunnel study in Hong Kong

Abstract. Vehicle emissions of VOCs were determined in summer and winter of 2003 at the Shing Mun Tunnel, Hong Kong. One hundred and ten VOCs were quantified in this study. The average concentration of the total measured VOCs at the inlet and outlet of the tunnel were 81 250 pptv and 117 850 pptv, respectively. Among the 110 compounds analyzed, ethene, ethyne and toluene were the most abundant species in the tunnel. The total measured VOC emission factors ranged from 67 mg veh−1 km−1 to 148 mg veh−1 km−1, with an average of 115 mg veh−1 km−1. The five most abundant VOCs observed in the tunnel were, in decreasing order, ethene, toluene, n-butane, propane and i-pentane. These five most abundant species contributed over 38% of the total measured VOCs emitted. The high propane and n-butane emissions were found to be associated with LPG-fueled taxi. And fair correlations were observed between marker species (ethene, i-pentane, n-nonane, BTEX) with fractions of gasoline-fueled or diesel-fueled vehicles. Moreover, ethene, ethyne, and propene are the key species that were abundant in the tunnel but not in gasoline vapors or LPG. In order to evaluate the ozone formation potential emissions in Hong Kong, the maximum increment reactivity is calculated. It was found that about 568 mg of O3 is induced by per vehicle per kilometer traveled. Among them, ethene, propene and toluene contribute most to the ozone-formation reactivity.