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Indya Flanagan
Dr. Tiefenbacher
Air Quality Management
4 December 2014

Air Quality and Vehicles

Introduction
Nothing speaks of modernity like the personal vehicle. In our modern
industrial society with our strong and extensive infrastructural system of vast
roads and highways, transportation by car has become quite normal in North
America, and indeed in many economically developed nations of the world.
The modern personal vehicle has opened the doors to unobstructed
travel to and from relatively distant locations. Cars comprise the primary
means by which many people interact with distant networks of family
members and friends, (Hjorthol n.d.). People use cars to transport
themselves and their personal items from city to city, and even from state to
state or across country boundaries. Beyond using cars for traveling
significant distances, cars have become the infrastructural basis of many, if
not most, American cities and towns. From the city of Los Angeles, California,
to the city of Houston, Texas, the personal vehicle proves the means by
which people move themselves around within cities, between home, work,
and school.

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People generally have become quite accustomed to relying on cars as

a facet of daily life in the city and a very crucial aspect of city life, a life
founded on rapid transportation from one area to another. Additionally, cars
used for personal transportation do not form the entirety of our dependence
on vehicular transportation. Buses, garbage trucks, and other service
vehicles comprise our multifaceted society designed around the efficient
transportation of people and goods throughout the country and even the
Earth. Even though vehicles come in various sizes, shapes, and purposes,
each owes its power to the same feat of engineering.
Brief History of Motor Vehicles
The invention of the modern car hearkens to the invention of the
internal combustion engine. The internal combustion engine rests on the
idea that one can create a controlled explosion within a specific, controlled
area in order to harvest the energy from that combustion and urge the object
into motion. The energy created inside the internal combustion engine jolts
the pistons in the engine, pistons designed to cycle and transform the energy
of heat into vehicular momentum. Engines which run on gasoline rely upon a
spark inside the internal combustion engine to ignite the fire which springs
the vehicle into motion. Interestingly, however, the diesel internal
combustion engine relies on pure pressure of the gases inside the internal
combustion engine in order to elicit a spark; the prodigious force of the
pressure exerted on the gases inside the diesel internal combustion engine

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proves adequately powerful to actually ignite a flame within the engine,

(Benson 2014).
The first vehicles proved somewhat difficult to handle; only people
specifically trained by a car dealer could operate the vehicle. Igniting the
internal combustion engine of one of the first commercially available vehicles
proved an exceedingly complex and difficult process involving multiple limbs,
impeccable timing, and a working knowledge of vehicular mechanics,
(Steinbeck 2003). The car gradually usurped other forms of transport (mule
and buggy) due to its advantages insofar as speed, convenience, inanimate
essence, and symbol of social status and wealth. The original pricey novelty
of a car gradually transformed into a device more widely available to
Americas growing middle class people, (Early Cars 2001).
The history of pollution goes hand in hand with the history of
automobiles. Perhaps one of the most historically significant advances in
mitigating air pollution from vehicular emissions proved the invention of the
catalytic converter. According to the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, a man
named Robert C. Stempel oversaw the development of the first practical
catalytic converter, circa 1973. A catalytic converter works by converting
nitrous oxides, carbon monoxide, and unburned hydrocarbons into nitrogen
gas, carbon dioxide, and water, (The Catalytic Converter 2014).
The American government eventually passed legislation to control
emissions from personal cars and other personal vehicles in order to slash air

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pollution and increase general air quality. The Clean Air Act of 1970 sparked
interest in the catalytic converter as a means of improving air quality by
reducing emissions from vehicles, (History of the Clean Air Act 2013). The
catalytic converter seemed unpopular at first, with many practiced motorists
arguing that the catalytic converter hampered the brute force of their
engines. However, as the citizenry grew accustomed to catalytic converters
as a part of owning and operating a personal vehicle, the device has
successfully reduced air pollution, especially in larger cities which rely on
cars as the primary source of transportation across the citys infrastructure.
Since 1975, the catalytic converter has prevented millions of tons of
hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide from entering the atmosphere, (The
Catalytic Converter 2014).
Vehicular Emissions
Unfortunately, cars have proven to possess a very sinister side indeed.
Ever since the mass production of cars allowed increasing amounts of
middle-class individuals to purchase the newfangled technology, issues
associated with emissions have occurred.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency and the United
Kingdom Department for Transport, car emissions contribute to several of the
criteria air pollutants. The criteria pollutants monitored by the EPA under the
National Ambient Air Quality Standards include carbon monoxide, lead,
nitrogen dioxide, ozone, particle pollution, and sulfur dioxide, (National

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Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) 2014). Of these criteria air

pollutants, cars contribute significant emissions of carbon monoxide, nitrous
oxides, and particulate matter. Additionally, cars emit vast amounts of
hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide, (Cars and air pollution 2014).
Although governmental regulations of lead have definitely succeeded
in dramatically reducing lead emissions from vehicular transportation, cars
continue to pollute the air with other criteria air pollutants. According to
Pokharel et al., since 1998 automobiles contributed 60% of the carbon
monoxide, 44% of the hydrocarbons, and 31% of the oxides of nitrogen
emitted into the atmosphere in the United States, (Pokharel et al. 2003).
One particularly troublesome source of emissions within large cities
proves to be that of idling vehicles. When vehicles move swiftly across a road
or along a highway, the exhaust from their tailpipes disperses itself due to
the momentum of the vehicle, (Ning et al. 2005). However, when a vehicle
idles, especially for prolonged moments in time such as at busy intersections
within the city, the fumes and pollution emitted from the tailpipe linger in the
air, causing harm to pedestrians. Furthermore, according to Ning et al., many
cars burn 25% or more of their fuel when idling at a stop. These idling
emissions are considered more harmful than ordinary emissions because the
pollutants are not dispersed by the wake of moving vehicles, (Ning et al.
2005). Unfortunately, this wonton waste of fuel proves disastrous for the air
quality management of cities. Additionally, most intersections where the

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consistent idling of cars occurs happen to be intersections frequented by

pedestrians, exposing the citizenry to unwarranted extra pollution.
Thankfully, improvements in vehicular engineering and design
have helped reduce vehicular emissions, especially in busy cities. Ning et al.
argue that: it helps reduce the impact to commuters if older vehicles are
replaced with newer ones complying with the latest emissions standard,
(Ning et al. 2005). Newer cars tend to combust fuel more efficiently and
produce less emissions overall because scientific engineers have improved
the combustion rates of materials within the internal combustion engines of
newer personal vehicles. Pokharel et al. argue that improved technology for
automobiles has helped reduce pollution from vehicles. They suggest that
emissions deterioration over time has slowed, and argue that improved
vehicular technology has led to the proportionate annual decrease in annual
emissions, (Pokharel et al. 2003).
Sadly, as I learned in Dr. Tiefenbachers class Air Quality Management,
when scientific engineers attempt to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in
the atmosphere by tightening the internal combustion engines efficiency,
carbon dioxide decreases only to leave the human community with a
significant increase in nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere. Unfortunately,
nitrogen oxide pollution in the air cannot easily be mitigated.
Moreover, Frumkin argues that: Even though automobile and truck
engines have become far cleaner in recent decades, the sheet quantity of

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vehicle miles driven results in large releases of carbon monoxide, carbon

dioxide, particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons [] (Frumkin
2002). Most of these air pollutants (with the exception of carbon dioxide)
prove immediately deleterious to human health.
Health Effects
Health effects of air pollution from cars and other personal vehicles
depends on the susceptibility of the individuals exposed, the amount of
exposure, and the length of time for which the individual is exposed to the
various air pollutants in the atmosphere, (Risk Assessment for Toxic Air
Pollutants: A Citizens Guide 2013). Unfortunately, as cities grow and
expand at quickening rates, city planners often fail to take action to build
adequate public transportation to handle the quotidian commutes of a
burgeoning population. Therefore, the urban sprawl situation arises, a
situation in which the personal vehicle (car) takes primacy as the most timeefficient and facile means of human transport, (Frumkin 2002).
Historically, lead pollution from the exhaust of vehicles proved very
dangerous to human health. In an article written at the time of the
controversy over leaded fuels, Falk argues that: Symptoms and disease
states might be facilitated because of the build-up of lead in many
environments. The general ecologic undesirability of contributing
unnecessarily to global surface contamination with such a potentially toxic
substance is apparent, (Falk 1977). Falk, a member of the Committee on

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Human Health, goes on to urge the phase-out of leaded gasoline, a timely

warning. To solidify his argument, Falk intones that: in adults approximately
35% of inhaled lead is retained in the lungs, (Falk 1977). In a 1995 Air
Quality Fact Sheet, the Environmental Protection Agency warns that lead is
extremely toxic; high concentrations damage the central nervous system,
especially in young children, (Leaded Gas Phaseout 2014).
Thankfully, the government heeded the warnings of the Committee on
Human Health and other scientists in regards to lead. According to the
Environmental Protection Agency, After the Clean Air Act of 1970 and its
Amendments, lead concentrations in America have decreased by a whopping
89% since 1984. As of December 31 1995 leaded gasoline is completely
unavailable in the United States, (Leaded Gas Phaseout 2014).
Although we solved the issue of lead pollution from vehicular emissions
in America, we can look at those affected by lead pollution from tailpipe
emissions before the Clean Air Act of 1970 went into full effect as indicators
as to which groups of people have the most risk of health issues from
vehicular emissions.
Falk suggests that city-dwellers faced more issues with lead pollution
because of their continuous proximity to vehicular emissions: Population
studies have shown that urban blood lead levels are significantly higher than
suburban, (Falk 1977). Pokharel et al. reiterate that people who dwell in
urban areas face higher levels of pollution. For example, they note that in

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Colorado in 1998, 86% of Denvers carbon monoxide emissions come from

motor vehicles, (Pokharel et al. 2003). We can assume that the story proves
much the same for other large cities that rely heavily on cars as their
primary means of transport.
From Pokharel et al.s and Falks research we may surmise that citydwellers continue to face higher concentrations of other pollutants emitted
from tailpipes due to their chronic exposure to vehicular emissions. As
discussed in the previous section, these pollutants include carbon monoxide,
nitrous oxides, particulate matter, and hydrocarbons, (Cars and pollution
2014).
According to the United Kingdom Department for Transport, carbon
monoxide reduces the bloods oxygen carrying capacity, starving the body of
oxygen. Extreme levels of exposure can prove fatal, and even lower levels
put those suffering from heart disease at great risk, (Cars and pollution
2014). The Occupational Safety & Health Administration explains that
exposure to carbon monoxide from automobile exhaust causes carbon
monoxide poisoning. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include
headache, fatigue, flu-like symptoms, and potential heart problems like chest
pain, an irregular heartbeat, and cardiac arrest, (Car Exhaust n.d.)
Nitrogen oxides harm individuals with respiratory illnesses, increasing
hospitalization for respiratory-related issues. Long-term exposure to nitrogen
oxides emitted from the tailpipes of personal vehicles has deleterious effects

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on lung function and increases sensitivity to allergens in many people, (Cars

and pollution 2014).
Particulate matter, or fine particles, lodge themselves in the lungs and
cause many issues. According to the Environmental Protection Agency,
Particulate matter causes premature death in people with heart or lung
disease, increases the risk of nonfatal heart attacks and an irregular
heartbeat, aggravates asthma, decreases lung function, and increases
negative respiratory symptoms like coughing and difficulty breathing,
(Particulate Matter (PM): Health 2014).
Hydrocarbons damage the respiratory system and have proven to be
carcinogenic agents, (Cars and pollution 2014). Additionally, nitrous oxides
and hydrocarbons contribute to ground level ozone formation, another
criteria air pollutant with a host of health problems.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, ground level ozone
makes deep, vigorous breathing difficult, causes shortness of breath and
pain during inhalation, causes coughing and a sore throat, damages the
airways, aggravates asthma, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis, increases
the frequency of asthma attacks, opens up the lungs to infection, and
continues to damage the lungs even after exposure to ground level ozone
ceases, (Ground-level Ozone: Health Effects 2014).

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According to Gardner, long-term exposure to air pollution increased the

risk of death from cardiovascular disease by 76%. The dangers seem gravest
in regards to fine particulate pollutants. Even people who try to lead healthy
lifestyles unwittingly expose themselves to pollution in the form of car
exhaust. People exercising around heavy traffic increase their risk of
deleterious health effects due to exposure to carbon monoxide. According to
Dr. Nicholas Mills of the Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences at the University
of Edingurgh, people must avoid exercising in heavy traffic to maintain good
health, (Gardner 2014). Furthermore, Gardner asserts that men with stable
heart disease who were exposed to diesel exhaust fumes exhibited reduced
blood flow to their hearts, increasing their risk of various cardiovascular
problems including heart attacks. Additionally, Gardner summarizes the fact
that the interaction between fine particles found in diesel exhaust and fatty
acids in LDL cholesterol activate the genes that cause inflammation in the
blood vessels, leading to atherosclerosis and ultimately the blockage of blood
vessels, (Gardner 2014).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the human community must strive to reduce or
completely eliminate toxic vehicular emissions in order to improve the
collective health of all Americans, particularly those who dwell in cities. Since
cars have become a major facet of modern life, issues with air quality
management in regards to exhaust fumes have arisen. Success stories

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include dramatically reducing lead pollution from automobiles, the catalytic

converter, and more efficiently designed vehicles. Unfortunately, the
increasing amount of cars on the road continues to pose health risks to
humans in the form of carbon monoxide, ground-level ozone, nitrous oxides,
particulate matter, and hydrocarbons.

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