Indian Journal of Science and Technology

Abstract

Diurnal variations of surface ozone and NOx (oxides of nitrogen) at Kannur University Campus (12.3N, 75.4E), a rural location and at Kannur Town, an urban location in Kannur (11.9N, 75.3E), a tropical coastal site in the state of India have been studied during winter months of 2009 and 2010. Being an industrially weak area, the study has the uniqueness to reveal the surface ozone production from its prominent precursor NOx at this site lying along the coastal belt of the Arabian Sea. The maximum value of surface ozone has been observed during day time and minimum during night at two locations. The rate of production and loss of surface ozone is higher at a rural location than an urban location in the same region. This highlights the substantial difference in the ozone chemistry over these two locations.
Keywords: Surface Ozone, NOx, Diurnal Variation, Air pollution