Particulates

Wet scrubbers pass the dirty air through a scrubbing solution (usually a mixture of water and other compounds) allowing the particulate to attach to the liquid molecules.

[88][89] Some of the mandatory dust control measures include[90][85][91][92] load, unload, handle, transfer, store or dispose of cement or dry pulverized fuel ash in a completely enclosed system or facility, and fit any vent or exhaust with an effective fabric filter or equivalent air pollution control system or equipment, enclose the scaffolding of the building with dust screens, use impervious sheeting to enclose both material hoist and debris chute, wet debris with water before it is dumped into a debris chute, have water sprayed on the facade surface before and during grinding work, use grinder equipped with vacuum cleaner for facade grinding work, spray water continuously on the surface for any pneumatic or power-driven drilling, cutting, polishing or other mechanical breaking operation that causes dust emission, unless there is the operation of an effective dust extraction and filtering device, provide hoarding of not less than 2.4 m in height along the whole length of the site boundary, have hard paving on open area and wash every vehicle that leaves the construction sites.

Besides removing particulates from the source of pollution, they may also be cleaned in the open air (e.g. smog tower, moss wall, and water truck),[93] while other control measures employ the use of barriers.

For instance, if absorbing aerosols are present in a layer aloft in the atmosphere, they can heat surrounding air which inhibits the condensation of water vapour, resulting in less cloud formation.

[133][134][135][136][137][138] Some are certain that they cool the planet, though, and this led to solar geoengineering proposals known as stratospheric aerosol injection, which seeks to replicate and enhance the cooling from sulfate pollution while minimizing the negative effects on health through deploying in the stratosphere, where only a fraction of the current sulfur pollution would be needed to avoid multiple degrees of warming,[139] but the assessment of costs and benefits remains incomplete,[140] even with hundreds of studies into the subject completed by the early 2020s.

[164] The World Health Organization (WHO) provides guidelines to limit exposure:[165] The site and extent of absorption of inhaled gases and vapors are determined by their solubility in water.

The particulate matter generated from the fire of a recycling yard[168] or a ship full of scrap metal[169][170] may contain more toxic substances than other types of burning.

Use of power tools, heavy equipments, diesel fuels and potentially toxic building materials (e.g. concrete, metals, solder, paint, etc.)

[212] A study by the European Environment Agency estimates that 307,000 people have died prematurely in 2019 due to fine particle pollution in the 27 EU member states.

[220] PM exposure can cause inflammation, oxidative stress, endocrine disruption, and impaired oxygen transport access to the placenta,[221] all of which are mechanisms for heightening the risk of low birth weight.

Using geospatial analytical techniques, "NIEHS-funded researchers were able to confirm a strong association between cases of Parkinson's disease and fine particulate matter (known as PM2.5) across the U.S.

In the study, regions of the country with a high rate of Parkinson's disease were associated generally with higher levels of PM2.5, of which sources include motor vehicles, wildfires, and power plants.

[239] There have been many studies linking race to increased proximity to particulate matter, and thus susceptibility to adverse health effects of long term exposure.

[240] This reality is made worse by the finding that "health care occurs in the context of broader historic and contemporary social and economic inequality and persistent racial and ethnic discrimination in many sectors of American life".

[242] Multiple studies confirm the burden of PM emissions is higher among non-White and poverty ridden populations,[242] though some say that income does not drive these differences.

[243] This correlation between race and housing related health repercussions stems from a longstanding environmental justice problem linked to the practice of historic redlining.

An example of these factors contextualized is an area of Southeastern Louisiana, colloquially dubbed 'Cancer Alley' for its high concentration of cancer related deaths due to neighboring chemical plants.

A 2020 article relates the long-term health effects of living in high PM concentrations to increased risk, spread, and mortality rates from the SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19, and faults a history of racism for this outcome.

They've fallen back on delay, subtle forms of propaganda and the undermining of regulation," said Geoffrey Supran, a Harvard University researcher of the history of fossil-fuel companies and climate change.

These efforts have been compared, by policy analysts such as Carroll Muffett of the Center for International Environmental Law, to the tobacco industry strategy of lobbying and corporate propaganda campaigns to create doubt regarding the causal connection between cigarette smoking and cancer and to forestall its regulation.

In addition, industry-funded advocates, when appointed to senior government positions in the United States, have revised scientific findings showing the deadly effects of air pollution and have rolled back its regulation.

Particulates are the deadliest form of air pollution due to their ability to penetrate deep into the lungs and blood streams unfiltered, causing respiratory diseases, heart attacks, and premature death.

[257] In 2013, the ESCAPE study involving 312,944 people in nine European countries revealed that there was no safe level of particulates and that for every increase of 10 μg/m3 in PM10, the lung cancer rate rose 22%.

Political programs such as mandatory vehicle emissions testing and the prohibition of smoking indoors are actions taken by local government to create public awareness and participation in cleaner air.

The location of Denver next to the Rocky Mountains and wide expanse of plains makes the metro area of Colorado's capital city a likely place for smog and visible air pollution.

PM10 pollution in coal mining areas in Australia such as the Latrobe Valley in Victoria and the Hunter Region in New South Wales significantly increased during 2004 to 2014.

[287] The PM levels in Chinese cities were extreme between 2010 and 2014, reaching an all-time high in Beijing on 12 January 2013, of 993 μg/m3,[70] but has been improving thanks to clean air actions.

[citation needed] The other 60% of the population reside in shantytowns (Ger districts), which have developed due to the country's new market economy and the very cold winter seasons.

The resulting air pollution is characterized by raised sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide levels and very high concentrations of airborne particles and particulate matter (PM).

The discrepancies maybe due to the differences in data choice, calculation methods, definitions of "cleanliness" and a large variation of air quality across the same state, etc.