A Blog of the ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences
Overview Airborne pollutants can have negative physiological impacts on passengers and crew members in the short- and long-term, hence aircraft cabin air quality is very important to human wellbeing. Due to their detrimental effects on human health, volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds, also known as VOCs and SVOCs, must be eliminated from the cabin air. … Read more
In spring three years ago, in the middle of the first lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic in Switzerland, we packed up our measurement system (SMARTEMIS) and drove to Zurich Airport to record unique air quality data near the airport area. At this time, aircraft movements had dropped by more than 90% compared to the previous … Read more
Whereas Billy Idol enjoyed the hot summer nights in New York City, many urban dwellers nowadays wish for colder urban environments. We at ZAV investigate the urban climate and potential measures to mitigate the increasingly high temperatures within the urban heat island. Zurich’s dense urban measurement network provides an ideal dataset for comparison with and … Read more
Whereas Billy Idol enjoyed the hot summer nights in New York City, many urban dwellers nowadays wish for colder urban environments. We at ZAV investigate the urban climate and potential measures to mitigate the increasingly high temperatures within the urban heat island. Zurich’s dense urban measurement network provides an ideal dataset for comparison with and … Read more
The field of aviation is undergoing a transformation and strives to reinvent itself as a more sustainable and resource-efficient field. To ensure this development, well-trained experts who combine a fascination for aviation with an innovative drive towards sustainable solutions are needed. Not only today, but also in the future. For the promotion of young talents, … Read more
Almost exactly 4 years ago, we started planning an urban climate measurement network for Zurich together with meteoblue AG as part of an Innosuisse project. If we had known at the time how much work it would take to set up and maintain such a measuring network, we would probably have left it alone. Fortunately, … Read more
As most of our active followers know, our research group is responsible for the operation, maintenance and optimization of the Swiss Mobile Aircraft Emission Measurement System (SMARTEMIS). Typically, the system is installed in test cell 1 at SR Technics, located at Zurich Airport. In 2022 however, the SR Technics management decided to reactivate their second … Read more
As most of our active followers know, our research group is responsible for the operation, maintenance and optimization of the Swiss Mobile Aircraft Emission Measurement System (SMARTEMIS). Typically, the system is installed in test cell 1 at SR Technics, located at Zurich Airport. In 2022 however, the SR Technics management decided to reactivate their second … Read more
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requires that engines of maximum rated thrust greater than 26.7kN be certified for their emission performance[1]. For certification, ICAO defined four power modes in an aircraft’s landing-take-off (LTO) cycle as emission test points. These modes include idle/taxi at 7% of the maximum rated thrust (Foo), approach at 30% Foo, … Read more
Cities globally seek to improve the quality of living and consequently pay great attention to the effects of new constructions on the surrounding. Furthermore, there is a great demand for evaluating methods to mitigate the urban heat island effect. Exemplarily, the city of Zurich mapped out strategies on how to approach the urban heat problem … Read more
Written by: Jon G. Bell (belj@zhaw.ch) Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as benzene and formaldehyde, are characterised by high vapour pressures and, therefore, can easily adsorb to the surface of airborne soot particles, accumulating at the vapour-solid soot interface, within pores, or between the carbon core turbostratic graphene layers. These VOC-loaded, nanometric particles are extremely … Read more
