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Use of mosses for bioindication of atmospheric deposition
Ullmannová, Adéla ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Vindušková, Olga (referee)
Atmospheric deposition of pollutants is a significant environmental problem that can have a serious impact on ecosystems and human health. Therefore, monitoring this process is essential to assess its impacts and develop effective mitigation strategies. This bachelor's thesis is a literature review that deals with the use of mosses as bioindicators of atmospheric deposition. Mosses are sensitive to environmental changes and can accumulate pollutants from the atmospheric deposition, making them valuable and widely utilised bioindicators of the atmospheric deposition loads. The thesis summarizes the different types of pollutants that can be deposited in the atmosphere and the methods used to collect and analyze moss samples. It also discusses factors that influence the response of mosses to atmospheric deposition, such as species differences, geographical location and environmental conditions. It examines the advantages and limitations of their use as bioindicators. Further research is needed to improve the understanding of the relationship between mosses and atmospheric deposition and to design a unified protocol that standardizes methods and increases their effectiveness for international monitoring of environmental pollution. The work highlights the importance of monitoring atmospheric deposition...
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Vegetation effects on ambient air quality alongside the motorways
Kučera, Lukáš ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Lhotka, Radek (referee)
The bachelor thesis is a literature search on the removal of pollutants emitted by traffic with the use of vegetation barriers along public roads. The aim of the thesis is to investigate the reasons leading to contradictions existing in the literature about the effectiveness of vegetation barriers. It explores which type and structure of vegetation barrier is the most effective in removing pollutants from the air. On the basis of the conducted research and available data, it determines whether it makes sense to consider introduction of vegetation barriers along H6 Úlibice-Hořice and H7 Hořice-Sadová, the segments of the D35 highway. The first part of the paper outlines that the effectiveness of a vegetation barrier is influenced by a number of factors such as the wind speed and its direction, precipitation summary, vegetation density,itś height and species composition or dimensions of vegetation barriers itself. For this reason, there is no general type or structure of vegetation barrier that improves air quality, and it is therefore essential to desingn such barrier on a site-specific basis. The reason for negative impact of some vegetation barriers on air quality was due to their improper design. The second part of the thesis deals with the suitability of planting vegetation barriers on selected...
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Atmospheric aerosol and hydrometeors
Jüthner, Ludvík ; Zíková, Naděžda (advisor) ; Hůnová, Iva (referee)
This thesis examines the interactions between ultrafine and fine modes of atmospheric aerosol and precipitation episodes of rain, snow and drizzle. For the research were used data from the period 1.11.2018 to 30.4.2020 at the rural background station Milešovka. It was chosen a combination of a disdrometer together with a Scanning mobility particle sizer spectrometer (SMPS) for the data collection. Ten-minute averages were then used to determine the change in aerosol particle concentration during individual precipitation episodes and to calculate the scavenging coefficient. Then was calculated a Pearson correlation to determine the effect of raindrop size, rainfall intensity, temperature, relative humidity and wind speed on the decrease in aerosol concentration by individual hydrometeors. Finally, a cluster analysis of the air mass history was performed. An assessment of the change in aerosol particle concentration during each event showed that although all three selected hydrometeors contributed to the decrease in particle concentrations, only rain caused a decrease in all size classes (-5,7%). The result of the scavenging coefficient estimation further confirmed the higher success of rain, with a median coefficient of 6,62 x 10-4 s-1 . The atmospheric cleaning by rain then proceeded best between...
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Climate change or precursor emissions - which of these will be the major player in future ground-level ozone concentrations?
Tremaskina, Anastasiia ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Matoušková, Leona (referee)
This thesis examines the reasons for potential future outcomes as well as the evolution of future ground-level O3 concentrations. Ground-level O3 is primarily formed by the reaction of precursor emissions, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), in the presence of solar radiation and warm temperatures. Transport, industrial operations, and energy production are the primary human activities that produce these emissions. Climate change, on the other hand, also has an impact on ground-level O3 concentrations by modifying the atmospheric conditions that promote O3 generation. The frequency and length of high O3 occurrences, for instance, may increase with increasing temperatures and changes in atmospheric circulation patterns, but drought conditions may decrease plant ability to absorb O3 and other pollutants. Additionally, precursor emissions can potentially be impacted by climate change. For instance, rising temperatures may cause plants to produce more biogenic VOCs, and shifting rainfall patterns may have an impact on soil NOx emission rates. Therefore, both precursor emissions and climate change must be considered and addressed in order to correctly anticipate future ground-level O3 concentrations. The work covers the results of previous studies on precursor emissions...
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Environmental and Health Benefits of Electromobility
Sanetrník, Michal ; Bendl, Jiří (advisor) ; Hůnová, Iva (referee)
This bachelor thesis focuses on the health and environmental benefits of electromobility. The main objective of this thesis is to describe the current health and environmental risks of emissions from combustion engine vehicles and to determine whether electric vehicles eliminate these risks. The secondary objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of current emission regulations in automotive transportation. The first part of this thesis describes the current state of air pollution, sources of pollution, exposure and health impacts on the population. The second part is dedicated to electric vehicles and vehicles with combustion engines, and compares their health and environmental impacts. The output of this thesis is that combustion engine vehicles contribute to more than four million premature deaths worldwide each year, accelerate global climate change, damage the ozone layer, contribute to acidification, eutrophication, and negatively affect vegetation and pollinators. For these reasons, it is necessary to switch to a health and environmentally friendly alternative. Battery electric vehicles appear to be a suitable replacement in all areas covered by this thesis, especially if their implementation is accompanied by a transition to renewable sources. Keywords air polution, emissions, premature...
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Long-term trends in sulphur and nitrogen wet deposition - a comparison of Northern Hemisphere regions
Vlnasová, Eliška ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Kaňa, Jiří (referee)
This scientific literature review examines the time trends of wet atmospheric deposition of sulphur and nitrogen over a four decade period in three regions of the Northern Hemisphere, namely Europe, North America and Southeast Asia. The wet atmospheric deposition processes transport sulphur and nitrogen compounds from the atmosphere to the Earth's surface via vertical or horizontal pathways. Excessive levels of these deposited compounds can cause a number of environmental problems, such as change in biodiversity, degradation of forest stands or change in water and soil chemistry. It is therefore necessary to monitor and evaluate these trends. Sulphur and nitrogen can enter the atmosphere through anthropogenic emissions, among other sources. The change in sulphur and nitrogen emissions over the last four decades has undoubtedly influenced the time trends of wet deposition. The aim of this work is to evaluate these patterns in addition to the sulphur and nitrogen trends. This work also addresses the change in wet deposition ion ratios, in particular the change in the ratio of NH4 + to NO3 - in the wet deposition of nitrogen. Wet deposition of sulphur, in line with a significant reduction in sulphur compounds emissions, records a noticeable decrease in both Europe and North America, but wet...
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Use of mosses for bioindication of atmospheric deposition
Ullmannová, Adéla ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Vindušková, Olga (referee)
Atmospheric deposition of pollutants is a significant environmental problem that can have serious impacts on ecosystems and human health. Therefore, monitoring this process is essential to assess its impacts and develop effective mitigation strategies. This bachelor's thesis is a literature review that examines the use of mosses as bioindicators of atmospheric deposition. Mosses are sensitive to environmental changes and can accumulate pollutants from the atmosphere, making them valuable bioindicators. The thesis summarizes the different types of pollutants that can be deposited in the atmosphere and the methods used to collect and analyze moss samples. It also discusses factors that influence the response of mosses to atmospheric deposition, such as species differences, geographical location, and environmental conditions. Moreover, the advantages and limitations of using mosses as bioindicators are considered. Further research is needed to improve the understanding of the relationship between mosses and atmospheric deposition and to design a unified protocol that standardizes methods and increases their effectiveness for international monitoring of environmental pollution. The work highlights the importance of monitoring atmospheric deposition and provides valuable insights into the potential of...
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Carbon capture and storage as a part of strategy to reduce carbon dioxide emissions
Salátová, Anežka ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Matějíček, Luboš (referee)
Fight against climate change is influenced by many factors and it is becoming hot topic not only for scientists. Concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) throughout the history of the planet Earth have often been linked to climate change with all consequences, including mass species extinctions. The anthropogenic influence on the development of CO2 levels, with a noticeable onset in the post-industrial era, is an indisputable fact. As a result, it can lead to an increased occurrence or change in the intensity of extreme weather, other climatic phenomena, and even to the limitation of habitability in certain regions or on the planet itself. One of the options for reducing CO2 emissions is the carbon capture and storage or utilization. The main goals of this research is to summarize the described and newly developed technological options in the context of the climate crisis, to evaluate the conditions necessary for the wider and commercial use of this method, including the right political framework and financing, and to evaluate the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Worldwide, there are 31 projects in operation or under construction, mostly used for enhanced oil recovery. The Czech Republic is also intensively dealing with carbon capture and storage, and although none of...
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Vertical gradient of ambient air pollutant levels
Binda, Denis ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Zíková, Naděžda (referee)
Ambient air pollution, caused by harmful pollutants, is considered a severe problem for the natural environment and its components. Effective pollution regulation is possible with reliable data from monitoring stations covering the whole country. Those stations are mainly located at the altitude of 2 m above the surface, possessing their well-known horizontal representativeness. However, the knowledge of the vertical representativeness of these monitoring stations is not sufficient, causing problems while determining the relevance of these measurements for studying the effects of pollutants in various altitudes. The gradient of ozone concentration (determining the change of ozone concentration for each 10 m) was computed to determine the vertical profile of tropospheric ozone (the gradient in this work is using the unit [μg.m-3 /10 m]). Data, containing the ozone concentrations, were measured in altitudes of 2, 8, 50 and 230 m and sourced from the National atmospheric observatory Košetice in the time interval from 6.9.2013 to 31.12.2020. The ozone concentrations show a yearly periodicity, with higher values during the summer period (from 1.4. to 30.9.) and lower values during the winter period (from 1.10. to 31.3.). The gradient for layer 230-50 m outlines considerable stability throughout the year...
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Role of aerosol in climate change
Švátora, Milan ; Hůnová, Iva (advisor) ; Hovorka, Jan (referee)
Atmospheric aerosol is a suspension of liquid or solid particles or their mixture in the atmosphere. Tropospheric aerosols can get into the air from its natural sources or from anthropogenic sources. Release of carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels and organic and elemental carbon from biomass burning are the major anthropogenic sources of aerosols. Primary aerosols have a direct source of emissions (dust from quarries or from land, sea salt particles in the waves, volcanic ash during volcanic eruptions). Secondary aerosols are formed by chemical reactions of substances in the atmosphere, which converts the gas particles - so- called conversion of gases to particles (formation of nitrates by oxidation of nitrogen oxides and sulfates from sulfur dioxide). Atmospheric aerosol is an important component of the atmosphere and contributes to significant atmospheric events, such as precipitation formation and precipation fall, radiation balance of Earth. Aerosols can affect the radiation balance of the Earth in two ways. First, through absorption and scattering of shortwave and long wave radiation - so-called direct effect. Or serve as condensation nuclei on which water is condenses. Aerosols can affect formation, quantity, length of existence and radiation properties of clouds - so-called indirect effect. In...
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