Analysis of local concentration gradients in complex built environments: implications for Air Quality Management Areas

This paper reviews the existing guidance on placement of permanent air quality monitoring stations within urban areas and suggests the principles for a new, performance-based guidance. An integrated air quality model has been developed and validated for the designated Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) located in Glasgow City Centre to analyse the importance of local concentration gradients on positioning of permanent air quality monitoring stations in urban environments. The paper concludes with a call for the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) in optimising the positioning of permanent air quality monitoring stations within urban areas.