PMetro: Measurement of urban aerosols on a mobile platform

• A monitoring system of urban aerosol on a mobile platform has been implemented.
• Inter-comparison of different OPC has been done to test the sensors performances.
• Data are integrated with weather and traffic measurements.
• Modeling of urban aerosol pollutant dynamics is the task of the project.
• Data are communicated and made available online on a dedicated website.

PMetro is an innovative time/space resolved urban aerosol monitoring and data management system. The core of the monitoring system is a customized optical particle counter (OPC) integrated on a cabin of the metro urban transport system in Perugia (Central Italy). This peculiar arrangement and setup allow regular, real-time measurement of aerosol particles on a well defined path through the city all over the day. The performances of the prototype OPC system have been customized and finally inter-compared with those of similar commercial devices placed at fixed points along the metro line. Data from the mobile system are integrated with environmental measurements from fixed monitoring stations along the metro path in order to attain models of the evolution of urban aerosol pollutants.