Acknowledgment to the Reviewers of Journal of Environmental & Earth Sciences in 2025
2026-02-06
Aerosol Nanoparticle Growth Dynamics and Urban Air Quality in Megacities of China
Authors
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Ling Huang
Jianghan District Eco-Environmental Monitoring Station, Wuhan 430022, China
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Hong-Tao Li
Jianghan District Eco-Environmental Monitoring Station, Wuhan 430022, China
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Hai-Bo Zhang
Jianghan District Eco-Environmental Affairs Service Station, Wuhan 430022, China
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Bin Yan
Jianghan District Eco-Environmental Monitoring Station, Wuhan 430022, China
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Hui-Jun Wan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30564/jees.v8i8.13504Abstract
The role of aerosol nanoparticles in the urban atmosphere is significant but underappreciated, owing to the rapid formation, growth, and aging, which link gaseous precursors to particulate pollution, haze formation, and human exposure. The review summarizes existing knowledge on the dynamics of aerosol nanoparticle growth and its implications for air quality in China’s megacities. It studies the basic mechanisms of nanoparticle formation, condensational growth, coagulation, and chemical aging, and how the high-emission, high-humidity, and meteorologically complex conditions in large Chinese urban clusters alter these processes. The review also elucidates the contributions of traffic, industry, regional transport, atmospheric oxidation, and boundary-layer dynamics in governing nanoparticle behavior across various cities and seasons. New developments in field observations, chemical characterization, and process modeling are considered, along with the still-remaining uncertainties in determining early growth phases, precursor inputs, and urban-regional interactions. The environmental importance of nanoparticle growth as an intermediate between ultrafine particle pollution and PM2.5 formation, and its effects on haze, visibility, atmospheric chemistry, and public health and air quality management are given special attention. The review concludes that further pollution control in Chinese megacities should cease to rely solely on mass-based measurements and should be organized within a more comprehensive framework that accounts for particle counts, precursor chemistry, and growth-driven atmospheric changes. This kind of approach is critical for explaining current shifts in urban aerosol regimes and for developing more effective approaches to multipollutant control.
Keywords:
Aerosol Nanoparticles; Growth Dynamics; Urban Air Quality; Chinese Megacities; PM2.5 FormationReferences
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Huang, L., Li, H.-T., Zhang, H.-B., Yan, B., & Wan, H.-J. (2026). Aerosol Nanoparticle Growth Dynamics and Urban Air Quality in Megacities of China. Journal of Environmental & Earth Sciences, 8(8), 739–770. https://doi.org/10.30564/jees.v8i8.13504
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Copyright © 2026 Ling Huang, Hong-Tao Li, Hai-Bo Zhang, Bin Yan, Hui-Jun Wan
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