{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,6]],"date-time":"2026-03-06T12:59:35Z","timestamp":1772801975260,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":63,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"21","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,29]],"date-time":"2019-10-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1572307200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e Tecnologia","award":["UID\/EQU\/00511\/2019"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UID\/EQU\/00511\/2019"]}]},{"name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e Tecnologia","award":["IF\/01341\/2015"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["IF\/01341\/2015"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sustainability"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of less than 2.5 \u00b5m (PM2.5) is associated with adverse effects on human health (e.g., fatal cardiovascular and respiratory diseases), and environmental concerns (e.g., visibility impairment and damage in ecosystems). This study aimed to evaluate temporal and spatial trends and behaviors of PM2.5 concentrations in different European locations. Statistical threshold models using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) defined by Genetic Algorithms (GA) were also applied for an urban centre site in Istanbul, to evaluate the influence of meteorological variables and PM10 concentrations on PM2.5 concentrations. Lower PM2.5 concentrations were observed in northern Europe. The highest values were found at traffic-related sites. PM2.5 concentrations were usually higher during the winter and tended to present strong increases during rush hours. PM2.5\/PM10 ratios were slightly higher at background sites and the lower values were found in northern Europe (Helsinki and Stockholm). Ratios were usually higher during cold months and during the night. The statistical model (ANN + GA) allowed evaluating the combined effect of different explanatory variables (temperature, wind speed, relative humidity, air pressure and PM10 concentrations) on PM2.5 concentrations, under different regimes defined by relative humidity (threshold value of 79.1%). Important information about the temporal and spatial trends and behaviors related to PM2.5 concentrations in different European locations was developed.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/su11216019","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,31]],"date-time":"2019-10-31T05:18:26Z","timestamp":1572499106000},"page":"6019","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":29,"title":["Analysis and Modelling of PM2.5 Temporal and Spatial Behaviors in European Cities"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"11","author":[{"given":"Jos\u00e9","family":"Ad\u00e3es","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"LEPABE\u2014Laboratory for Process Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2738-5102","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jos\u00e9 C. M.","family":"Pires","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"LEPABE\u2014Laboratory for Process Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"WHO (2019, March 19). 9 Out of 10 People Worldwide Breathe Polluted Air, But More Countries Are Taking Action. Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/airpollution\/en\/."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"303","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2012.08.038","article-title":"Spatial variation of PM2.5, PM10, PM2.5 absorbance and PMcoarse concentrations between and within 20 European study areas and the relationship with NO2- Results of the ESCAPE project","volume":"62","author":"Eeftens","year":"2012","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"102","DOI":"10.1016\/j.envint.2017.03.019","article-title":"Cognitive impacts of ambient air pollution in the National Social Health and Aging Project (NSHAP) cohort","volume":"104","author":"Tallon","year":"2017","journal-title":"Environ. Int."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"322","DOI":"10.1093\/geronb\/gbu064","article-title":"Fine particulate matter air pollution and cognitive function among U.S. older adults","volume":"70","author":"Ailshire","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Gerontol.-Ser. B Psychol. Sci. Soc. Sci."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"741","DOI":"10.4209\/aaqr.2016.09.0406","article-title":"Spatial and temporal variability of the PM2.5\/PM10 ratio in Wuhan, Central China","volume":"17","author":"Xu","year":"2017","journal-title":"Aerosol Air Qual. Res."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"34","DOI":"10.4209\/aaqr.2016.02.0081","article-title":"Analysing temporal trends in the ratios of PM2.5\/PM10 in the UK","volume":"17","author":"Munir","year":"2017","journal-title":"Aerosol Air Qual. Res."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10283","DOI":"10.5194\/acp-14-10283-2014","article-title":"Linking climate and air quality over Europe: Effects of meteorology on PM2.5 concentrations","volume":"14","author":"Megaritis","year":"2014","journal-title":"Atmos. Chem. Phys."},{"key":"ref_8","first-page":"15","article-title":"Air Pollution Modeling-An Overview","volume":"I","author":"Daly","year":"2007","journal-title":"Ambient Air Pollut."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"122","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jenvman.2019.04.118","article-title":"Supporting the improvement of air quality management practices: The \u201cFAIRMODE pilot\u201d activity","volume":"245","author":"Pisoni","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Environ. Manage."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.envpol.2019.01.040","article-title":"A tale of two cities: is air pollution improving in Paris and London?","volume":"249","author":"Font","year":"2019","journal-title":"Environ. Pollut."},{"key":"ref_11","unstructured":"EEA (2019, July 31). Air quality in Europe\u20142018 report. Available online: https:\/\/www.eea.europa.eu\/publications\/air-quality-in-europe-2018."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"297","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2014.04.096","article-title":"Particulate matter and gaseous pollutants in the Mediterranean Basin: Results from the MED-PARTICLES project","volume":"488\u2013489","author":"Karanasiou","year":"2014","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"35","DOI":"10.1016\/S0169-2070(97)00044-7","article-title":"Forecasting with artificial neural networks: The state of the art","volume":"14","author":"Zhang","year":"1998","journal-title":"Int. J. Forecast."},{"key":"ref_14","first-page":"6","article-title":"Neural Networks using Genetic Algorithms","volume":"77","author":"Mahajan","year":"2013","journal-title":"Int. J. Comput. Appl."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Mlakar, P., and Zlata, M. (2012). Artificial Neural Networks - a Useful Tool in Air Pollution and Meteorological Modelling. Adv. Air Pollut.","DOI":"10.5772\/20824"},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"262","DOI":"10.1016\/j.envsoft.2019.04.012","article-title":"Air pollution prediction with clustering-based ensemble of evolving spiking neural networks and a case study on London area","volume":"118","author":"Kasabov","year":"2019","journal-title":"Environ. Model. Softw."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3228","DOI":"10.1007\/s11356-012-0829-9","article-title":"Optimization of artificial neural network models through genetic algorithms for surface ozone concentration forecasting","volume":"19","author":"Pires","year":"2012","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Vanneschi, L., and Castelli, M. (2018). Multilayer Perceptrons. Encyclopedia of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Elsevier.","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-12-809633-8.20339-7"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"237","DOI":"10.4209\/aaqr.2013.01.0020","article-title":"Characterization of PM2.5 major components and source investigation in suburban Hong Kong: A one year monitoring study","volume":"14","author":"Huang","year":"2014","journal-title":"Aerosol Air Qual. Res."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"234","DOI":"10.4209\/aaqr.2018.04.0131","article-title":"Chemical composition of particulate matter from traffic emissions in a road tunnel in Xi\u2019an, China","volume":"19","author":"Hao","year":"2019","journal-title":"Aerosol Air Qual. Res."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1327","DOI":"10.3390\/atmos6091327","article-title":"An overview of particulate matter measurement instruments","volume":"6","author":"Amaral","year":"2015","journal-title":"Atmosphere"},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1249","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2007.10.044","article-title":"Management of air quality monitoring using principal component and cluster analysis-Part I: SO2 and PM10","volume":"42","author":"Pires","year":"2008","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Afonso, N., and Pires, J. (2017). Characterization of Surface Ozone Behavior at Different Regimes. Appl. Sci., 7.","DOI":"10.3390\/app7090944"},{"key":"ref_24","first-page":"45","article-title":"Performance Metrics (Error Measures) in Machine Learning Regression, Forecasting and Prognostics: Properties and Typology","volume":"14","author":"Botchkarev","year":"2019","journal-title":"Interdiscip. J. Inf. Knowl. Manag."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8995","DOI":"10.1029\/JC090iC05p08995","article-title":"Statistics for the evaluation and comparison of models","volume":"90","author":"Willmott","year":"1985","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"375","DOI":"10.1007\/s00704-013-0851-y","article-title":"The fine and coarse particulate matter at four major Mediterranean cities: Local and regional sources","volume":"114","author":"Dimitriou","year":"2013","journal-title":"Theor. Appl. Climatol."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"359","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2004.04.036","article-title":"Levels of particulate matter in rural, urban and industrial sites in Spain","volume":"334\u2013335","author":"Querol","year":"2004","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6547","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2004.08.037","article-title":"Speciation and origin of PM10 and PM2.5 in selected European cities","volume":"38","author":"Querol","year":"2004","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"61","DOI":"10.1007\/s41810-018-0023-7","article-title":"Ambient Particulate Matter Concentration Levels and their Origin During Dust Event Episodes in the Eastern Mediterranean","volume":"2","author":"Kopanakis","year":"2018","journal-title":"Aerosol Sci. Eng."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lamancusa, C., and Wagstrom, K. (2019). Global transport of dust emitted from different regions of the sahara. Atmos. Environ., 1\u201310.","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2019.05.042"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"737","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2019.05.349","article-title":"African dust and air quality over Spain: Is it only dust that matters?","volume":"686","author":"Querol","year":"2019","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_32","unstructured":"Air Quality Expert Group (2019, July 31). Fine Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom, Available online: https:\/\/uk-air.defra.gov.uk\/assets\/documents\/reports\/cat11\/1212141150_AQEG_Fine_Particulate_Matter_in_the_UK.pdf."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4639","DOI":"10.1016\/S1352-2310(01)00124-8","article-title":"Characterisation of PM10 and PM2.5 particulate matter in the ambient air of Milan (Italy)","volume":"35","author":"Marcazzan","year":"2001","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"929","DOI":"10.1007\/s10653-018-0190-0","article-title":"Temperature inversion and air pollution relationship, and its effects on human health in Hanoi City, Vietnam","volume":"41","author":"Trinh","year":"2019","journal-title":"Environ. Geochem. Health"},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"148","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chemosphere.2015.12.118","article-title":"Spatial-temporal characteristics and determinants of PM2.5 in the Bohai Rim Urban Agglomeration","volume":"148","author":"Wang","year":"2016","journal-title":"Chemosphere"},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"612","DOI":"10.1016\/j.proeng.2015.08.1048","article-title":"A Study on the Model for Heating Influence on PM2.5 Emission in Beijing China","volume":"121","author":"Yuan","year":"2015","journal-title":"Procedia Eng."},{"key":"ref_37","unstructured":"Stadt Wien Municipal Department for Environmental Protection Vienna (2019, July 31). Available online: https:\/\/www.wien.gv.at\/english\/environment\/protection\/reports\/pdf\/complete-06.pdf."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Chen, T., He, J., Lu, X., She, J., and Guan, Z. (2016). Spatial and temporal variations of PM2.5 and its relation to meteorological factors in the urban area of Nanjing, China. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph13090921"},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"387","DOI":"10.1007\/s11434-014-0607-9","article-title":"Diurnal, seasonal, and spatial variation of PM2.5 in Beijing","volume":"60","author":"Li","year":"2015","journal-title":"Sci. Bull."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"627","DOI":"10.1007\/s11356-014-3347-0","article-title":"Seasonal and diurnal variation in particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) at an urban site of beijing: Analyses from a 9-year study","volume":"22","author":"Liu","year":"2015","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res."},{"key":"ref_41","unstructured":"Tiwary, A., and Colls, J. (2013). Air Pollution: Measurement, Modelling and Mitigation, CRC Press."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Yang, Q., Yuan, Q., Li, T., Shen, H., and Zhang, L. (2017). The relationships between PM2.5 and meteorological factors in China: Seasonal and regional variations. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph14121510"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3189","DOI":"10.5194\/acp-12-3189-2012","article-title":"One decade of parallel fine (PM2.5) and coarse (PM10-PM2.5) particulate matter measurements in Europe: Trends and variability","volume":"12","author":"Barmpadimos","year":"2012","journal-title":"Atmos. Chem. Phys."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Guenther, A. (1995). A global model of natural volatile organic compound emissions. J. Geophys. Res.","DOI":"10.1029\/94JD02950"},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"131","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2011.10.046","article-title":"Impact of biogenic emissions on air quality over Europe and North America","volume":"53","author":"Sartelet","year":"2012","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3586","DOI":"10.1021\/es015872v","article-title":"Contribution of biogenic emissions to the formation of ozone and particulate matter in the Eastern United States","volume":"36","author":"Pun","year":"2002","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"223","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2005.01.012","article-title":"Temporal variations of PM2.5 in the ambient air of a suburban site in Athens, Greece","volume":"349","author":"Vassilakos","year":"2005","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_48","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"153","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2014.01.004","article-title":"Study of PM10 and PM2.5 levels in three European cities: Analysis of intra and inter urban variations","volume":"87","author":"Kassomenos","year":"2014","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_49","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Duchi, R., Cristofanelli, P., Landi, T.C., Arduini, J., Bonafe\u2019, U., Bourcier, L., Busetto, M., Calzolari, F., Marinoni, A., and Putero, D. (2016). Long-term (2002\u20132012) investigation of Saharan dust transport events at Mt. Cimone GAW global station, Italy (2165 m a.s.l.). Elem. Sci. Anthr., 4.","DOI":"10.12952\/journal.elementa.000085"},{"key":"ref_50","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1586","DOI":"10.1039\/b903822a","article-title":"Saharan dust episodes in Italy: Influence on PM10 daily limit value (DLV) exceedances and the related synoptic","volume":"11","author":"Matassoni","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Environ. Monit."},{"key":"ref_51","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"50","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosres.2013.01.011","article-title":"Diurnal and seasonal variations of black carbon and PM2.5 over New Delhi, India: Influence of meteorology","volume":"125\u2013126","author":"Tiwari","year":"2013","journal-title":"Atmos. Res."},{"key":"ref_52","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2893","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2009.03.009","article-title":"Seasonal and diurnal variations of ambient PM2.5 concentration in urban and rural environments in Beijing","volume":"43","author":"Zhao","year":"2009","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_53","unstructured":"(2019, June 25). Finnish Meteorological Institute Temperature inversions. Available online: https:\/\/en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi\/temperature-inversions."},{"key":"ref_54","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"328","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2015.09.005","article-title":"Diurnal and seasonal variation of the PM2.5 apparent particle density in Beijing, China","volume":"120","author":"Liu","year":"2015","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_55","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3091","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2011.03.014","article-title":"Characteristics of particulate matter and heterogeneous traffic in the urban area of India","volume":"45","author":"Srimuruganandam","year":"2011","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_56","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"211","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2015.08.037","article-title":"Concentrations and emission factors for PM2.5 and PM10 from road traffic in Sweden","volume":"119","author":"Ferm","year":"2015","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_57","first-page":"2013","article-title":"The role of wind, temperature and relative humidity on PM fractions in a suburban mediterranean region","volume":"19","author":"Pateraki","year":"2010","journal-title":"Fresenius Environ. Bull."},{"key":"ref_58","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"27","DOI":"10.1080\/10962247.2016.1208121","article-title":"Monthly analysis of PM ratio characteristics and its relation to AOD","volume":"67","author":"Broday","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Air Waste Manag. Assoc."},{"key":"ref_59","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5343","DOI":"10.5194\/acp-18-5343-2018","article-title":"Understanding meteorological influences on PM2.5 concentrations across China: A temporal and spatial perspective","volume":"18","author":"Chen","year":"2018","journal-title":"Atmos. Chem. Phys."},{"key":"ref_60","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"453","DOI":"10.4209\/aaqr.2016.03.0117","article-title":"Analysing PM2.5 and its association with PM10 and meteorology in the arid climate of Makkah, Saudi Arabia","volume":"17","author":"Munir","year":"2017","journal-title":"Aerosol Air Qual. Res."},{"key":"ref_61","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3976","DOI":"10.1016\/j.atmosenv.2010.06.060","article-title":"Correlations between fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and meteorological variables in the United States: Implications for the sensitivity of PM2.5 to climate change","volume":"44","author":"Tai","year":"2010","journal-title":"Atmos. Environ."},{"key":"ref_62","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9089","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph120809089","article-title":"Effects of meteorological conditions on PM2.5 concentrations in Nagasaki, Japan","volume":"12","author":"Wang","year":"2015","journal-title":"Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health"},{"key":"ref_63","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.uclim.2019.01.003","article-title":"The role of local meteorology on ambient particulate and gaseous species at an urban site of western India","volume":"28","author":"Yadav","year":"2019","journal-title":"Urban Clim."}],"container-title":["Sustainability"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2071-1050\/11\/21\/6019\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T13:30:22Z","timestamp":1760189422000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2071-1050\/11\/21\/6019"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,29]]},"references-count":63,"journal-issue":{"issue":"21","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,11]]}},"alternative-id":["su11216019"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/su11216019","relation":{},"ISSN":["2071-1050"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2071-1050","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,29]]}}}