Research focused on how technological advancements (including vehicle, engine, and fuel technologies) affect transportation emissions and their implications from a public health perspective.
Related Projects
Secondary Particulate Matter Exceed Primary Emissions from Current Gasoline Vehicles: Air Quality and Public Health Implications
Lead: University of California, Riverside
Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) technology is becoming increasingly popular among vehicles in the market today. While there is relatively little-established knowledge on GDI vehicle emissions, studies have raised concerns relating to PM emissions, as well as the generation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and nitrated-PAHs. Another aspect that has not been investigated in detail is the secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation, which is also a contributor to airborne PM. This study will characterize the primary emissions and the secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from current technology gasoline direct injection (GDI) and port fuel injection (PFI) vehicles when operated under different driving cycles, through in-use emissions testing and the use of a mobile atmospheric chamber and oxidation flow reactor to assess secondary aerosol formation.
Assessing Regulatory Compliance and Community Air Pollution Impacts of Crude Oil by Rail Transport in Baltimore City, Maryland
Lead: Johns Hopkins University
Increases in hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”, in the Bakken Shale region of the United States have resulted in the transport of enormous volumes of crude oil by rail (CBR) across the country to refineries and ports along both the East and West Coasts. Baltimore City has been a hub for CBR transport throughout the fracking boom, due to its central location along the Eastern Shoreline and service as a transfer station along the Chesapeake Bay. This study will characterize CBR shipments in Baltimore City, and their impacts on local communities. Issues of regulatory compliance, impacts on measured volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in residential areas, and best practices in protecting community health will be addressed.
Developing a Transportation, Emissions and Health Data Hub
Lead: Texas A&M Transportation Institute
Partners: All other consortium members
This project addresses the need for a systematic, cross-disciplinary approach to understand different sources of data and reconcile different methods of data collection and analysis. A large amount of high-quality data exists in both the transportation and public health domains, which could be related spatially and temporally with each other for innovative research applications. A data hub developed in cooperation with all CARTEEH consortium members will facilitate the sharing of data between researchers from different disciplines and institutions.
Health Risk Characterization for Transportation Users
Lead: Johns Hopkins University
Partners: University of Texas at El Paso
The fields of occupational and environmental health are moving toward application of the concepts of cumulative risk assessment to enhance the health and safety of workers and communities. Yet, methods are rudimentary and few examples exist in this area, especially in terms of risk profiles for transportation system users and workers. The research team will apply its existing expertise in the area of risk assessments to a pilot project to develop a cumulative exposure and risk profile for transportation workers and transportation system users considering chemical and non-chemical stressors from the transportation setting as well as home, community, and social environments.
