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Sustainability
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Aerosol-Driven Air Pollution: Pathways to Sustainable Mitigation
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Aerosol-Driven Air Pollution: Pathways to Sustainable Mitigation

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Air, Climate Change and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 1755

Editor

Dr. Rafal Przekop

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Chemical and Process Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, ul. Waryńskiego 1, 00-645 Warsaw, Poland
Interests: deep bed filtration; air filters; aerosol mechanics; Lattice–Boltzmann method; porous media; biological fluids; molecular dynamics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aerosol-driven air pollution is one of the most pressing environmental and public health challenges today. Fine and ultrafine particles from natural and anthropogenic sources degrade air quality, influence atmospheric chemistry, and contribute to climate change. Understanding their life cycle—from emission and transformation to transport and deposition—is essential for developing sustainable mitigation strategies.

Recent growth in industrial activity, urbanization, and extreme wildfire events has intensified aerosol pollution in many regions. Simultaneously, advances in sensing technologies, materials science, modeling, and emissions control offer new opportunities for precise characterization of aerosols and for designing innovative mitigation pathways. Addressing aerosol-driven pollution requires integrated knowledge across atmospheric science, engineering, environmental health, and policy.

However, the complexity of aerosol processes—including nonlinear dynamics, multiscale interactions, and diverse source behaviors—continues to challenge accurate scientific description and effective control.

With this Special Issue on “Aerosol-Driven Air Pollution: Pathways to Sustainable Mitigation,” we invite original research and review articles that advance understanding of aerosol formation, transformation, and impacts, as well as sustainable approaches to reducing aerosol emissions.

The Special Issue focuses on (but is not limited to) the following topics:

  • Aerosol–cloud interactions and their implications for climate forcing;
  • Source apportionment studies using isotopic or molecular marker techniques;
  • Emerging aerosol sources, including microplastics and nanomaterials in the atmosphere;
  • Indoor aerosol dynamics, human exposure pathways, and mitigation technologies;
  • Real-time, low-cost sensor networks and data fusion approaches for aerosol monitoring;
  • Health risk assessment of chronic and acute exposure to fine and ultrafine particulate matter;
  • Life-cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) of aerosol control technologies and emissions-reduction interventions;
  • Socioeconomic and environmental equity dimensions of aerosol exposure and pollution mitigation;
  • Advances in sustainable materials for aerosol filtration, capture, and catalytic degradation.

Dr. Rafal Przekop
Guest Editor

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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

  • aerosol pollution
  • PM2.5
  • PM10
  • atmospheric chemistry
  • emission control
  • filtration
  • particles measurement
  • aerosol modeling

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 15481 KB  
Article
A Physically Consistent Modeling Framework for Evaluating Dust Aerosol Direct Radiative Forcing on Cotton GPP and Yield in Arid Oases
by Kexin Li, Nurmemet Erkin, Xarapat Ablat, Hongqi Wu, Ababaikere Maimaiti, Xiangge Wang and Yuwei Li
Sustainability 2026, 18(14), 7443; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18147443 - 21 Jul 2026
Abstract
Quantifying dust aerosol radiative impacts on crop growth in arid regions is challenging due to sparse ground observation networks for photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). Conventional meteorological stations only provide regional-averaged solar radiation and fail to capture fine spatial heterogeneity and instantaneous attenuation caused [...] Read more.
Quantifying dust aerosol radiative impacts on crop growth in arid regions is challenging due to sparse ground observation networks for photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). Conventional meteorological stations only provide regional-averaged solar radiation and fail to capture fine spatial heterogeneity and instantaneous attenuation caused by dust storms. To address this gap, this study developed a coupled framework integrating WRF-Chem, LibRadtran, multi-source remote sensing, and interpretable machine learning. We combined field sampling data, remote sensing products, and atmospheric simulations to explore how dust aerosol direct radiative forcing alters cotton gross primary productivity (GPP) and yield across the Weigan River Basin, Xinjiang, China. Results revealed significant PAR reduction induced by dust in 87% of cotton fields (p < 0.05). Dust presented a dual effect: it reduced photosynthetic productivity via radiation attenuation, while alleviating heat stress above 35 °C. SHAP analysis demonstrated that cotton GPP and yield declined nonlinearly when daily PAR loss exceeded 20 W·m−2, with the flowering-to-boll stage (July–August) identified as the most sensitive phenological window. This study verifies the necessity of combining atmospheric models and remote sensing for fine-scale assessment of dust radiative effects in data-scarce regions. The identified threshold provides practical references for targeted field management in arid cotton areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerosol-Driven Air Pollution: Pathways to Sustainable Mitigation)
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14 pages, 3487 KB  
Article
Pi-pi Stacking-Driven Nucleation of Aromatic Oxygenated Organic Molecules: Implications for Sustainable Urban Air-Quality Management
by Yiran Deng, Yongjun Han, Xinyu Liu, Yaxin Li, Haojie Xu, Hu Zhao and Xiangli Shi
Sustainability 2026, 18(11), 5375; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18115375 - 27 May 2026
Viewed by 363
Abstract
Aromatic compounds are abundant in urban and industrial environments and potentially serve as one of the primary precursors for new particle formation (NPF). Pi-pi stacking is a distinctive weak interaction observed between aromatic compounds. Aromatic oxygenated organic molecules (AOOM) are key products of [...] Read more.
Aromatic compounds are abundant in urban and industrial environments and potentially serve as one of the primary precursors for new particle formation (NPF). Pi-pi stacking is a distinctive weak interaction observed between aromatic compounds. Aromatic oxygenated organic molecules (AOOM) are key products of atmospheric oxidation of aromatic compounds; however, the role of pi-pi stacking in their involvement in atmospheric new particle formation (NPF) remains unclear. This study used quantum chemical calculations to reveal the nucleation mechanism of AOOM through pi-pi stacking and hydrogen bonding. The results indicate that the contribution of pi-pi stacking to nucleation in aromatic compounds is primarily determined by the stacking area. For aromatic hydrocarbons with 1–2 phenyl groups, the Gibbs free energy (ΔG) of dimolecular clusters formed solely by pi-pi stacking is positive. In contrast, for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with three or more phenyl groups, the ΔG of these clusters decreases significantly and becomes negative. Single-phenyl AOOM primarily participates in the NPF process through hydrogen bonding with sulfuric acid molecules. In this work, an explanation is provided for observations and laboratory findings of the appearance of aromatic-ring-retaining species in nanoparticles. The discovery of pi-pi stacking also completes the variety of atmospheric nucleation weak interactions. The oxidation and nucleation mechanisms of aromatic compounds should be reassessed, considering the effects of pi-pi stacking, especially polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These findings have important implications for sustainable urban air-quality management. By clarifying the role of pi-pi stacking, particularly in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, this study may improve predictions of new particle formation, refine secondary organic aerosol modeling, and inform targeted emission-control policies to protect public health and mitigate climate impacts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerosol-Driven Air Pollution: Pathways to Sustainable Mitigation)
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15 pages, 2057 KB  
Article
Spatiotemporal Variation of Dust Retention in the Leaves of Common Greening Tree Species in Urumqi
by Maidina Yiming, Kailibinuer Nuermaimaiti, Aliya Baidourela, Hongguang Bao and Enkaer Shadekebieke
Sustainability 2026, 18(7), 3240; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18073240 - 26 Mar 2026
Viewed by 402
Abstract
To investigate the spatiotemporal variations in particulate matter (PM) retention by common urban greening species, six tree species were studied across different functional zones in Urumqi, China, which includes traffic area (TA), residential area (RA), park area (PA), and landscape ecological forest (LA) [...] Read more.
To investigate the spatiotemporal variations in particulate matter (PM) retention by common urban greening species, six tree species were studied across different functional zones in Urumqi, China, which includes traffic area (TA), residential area (RA), park area (PA), and landscape ecological forest (LA) at varying altitudes. We measured the retention of PM0.2–3, PM3–10, PM>10, and PMtotal for Pinus sylvestris, Picea asperata, Ulmus pumila, Ligustrum obtusifolium, Ulmus densa, and Fraxinus rhynchophylla. Results showed significant differences (p < 0.05) among functional zones, with retention capacity following the order that evergreen trees > deciduous shrubs > deciduous trees. Specifically, P. sylvestris and Picea asperata exhibited the highest overall PM retention. Temporally, PM accumulation increased over time, reaching a minimum 3 days after heavy rainfall (>20.4 mm) and a maximum after 23 days. Spatially, retention was highest in the TA and lowest in the PA. On Yamalike Mountain, PM3–10 and PM>10 retention by Ulmus pumila increased significantly with altitude, while other fractions showed no clear trend. These findings suggest that the spatiotemporal differences in PM retention are distinct, and the strategic selection and management of species in specific urban environments can significantly enhance the regulation of atmospheric particulate pollution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerosol-Driven Air Pollution: Pathways to Sustainable Mitigation)
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