Particulate Matter in the Mediterranean Basin: Trends and Physicochemical Properties
A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Air Quality".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2023) | Viewed by 4211
Special Issue Editors
Interests: air pollution; exposure assessment; environmental epidemiology
Interests: atmospheric pollution; air quality measurements; boundary layer meteorology; urban air quality; multiresolution analysis
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Air pollution is considered an emerging public health problem in the Mediterranean basin. More specifically, Mediterranean countries are experiencing high concentrations of ambient particulate matter (PM) which exceed the daily European and WHO standards quite a few times within the year. Specifically, the WHO has estimated that 2/3 of Mediterranean countries exceed PM and ozone standards, and that around 7 million people, including more than 400,000 in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, died prematurely in 2012 because of air pollution. PM levels are influenced by locally produced and transported anthropogenic and natural origin air pollution. These include mainly traffic emissions, resuspended road dust, wildfires, dust storms from Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, transported air pollution particles from Western Europe, and sea salt. The region experiences quite a few challenges in comparison to other countries such as Northern European countries that have lower pollution levels. Several countries of the region lack adequate monitoring systems, regulations, and ground measurements, such as PM2.5 concentration levels. In addition, Mediterranean countries are highly affected by dust storms which are difficult to regulate due to their natural origin and are expected to increase in intensity and frequency in due to climate change. For this reason, it is important to understand the physicochemical properties and the transport mechanism of PM emissions to strengthen the evidence needed for policy action and contribute to preventive action in countries.
The purpose of this Special Issue is to gather evidence on the PM levels (PM1, PM2.5, PM10) and the impact of sources in countries across the Mediterranean region. This information can be used to improve our understanding on the impact and trends of sources of PM, support public health studies, assess intervention strategies, and inform policymakers. We therefore invite you to submit a novel research study or a review study that investigates the PM levels, composition, and sources in the Mediterranean region.
Dr. Souzana Achilleos
Dr. Petros Mouzourides
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- air pollution
- air quality
- air quality measurements
- exposure assessment
- particulate matter
- dust storms
- wildfires
- sea salt
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
