A formal ceremony at the University of Miskolc was held on 2 September 2021 to officially launch the operation of the particulate matter (PM) monitoring system of the HungAIRy project during, In the framework of the project, the pmmonitoring.hu was launched where users of the site can access data on PM mass concentrations.

As the result of the two-year long joint research and development program executed by environmental specialists of University of Miskolc and Miskolc City Council, a monitoring network was installed along with a service, collecting real-time air quality data and sharing it with people. During the formal ceremony, speeches were given by: 

• Prof. Dr. Zita Horváth, rector of the University of Miskolc
• Péter Bozzay, Executive director of Herman Otto Institute Nonprofit Ltd.
• Pál Veres, mayor of Miskolc City

In their speeches, they all highlighted the importance of the new local network, which represents a milestone within the HungAIRy integrated project’s life, and it is a real opportunity to improve air quality in Miskolc.

The monitoring network and pmmonitoring.hu website were launched by:

• Prof. Dr. Árpád Bence Palotás, dean of the Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering of Miskolc University,
• Dr. Sensor.

Dr. Sensor joined to the event through a video call, and explained how the website works. He demonstrated that air sensors could indicate the current quality of the air by displaying different colours. During the handover ceremony, smoke got into the system, and the air quality indicator fleshed red due to the high concentrations of particulate matter.

What are the benefits of the HungAIRy PM monitoring system?

The main advantage of the system is its capability to generate high-resolution data on air pollution in Miskolc, and share it immediately with the public. On the website, besides having a map with real-time information on particulate matter air pollution, guidance to protect health and to improve air quality is also available.

To carry out air quality measurements, it is essential to inform regulatory planning and understand trends over time. Therefore, data can be used not only for informing people of current air pollution, but for identifying unknown air pollution sources and identifying air pollution hotspots that require specific intervention, in order to improve air quality.

Who is Dr. Sensor?

Dr. Sensor is an animated character, becoming the face of the “pmmonitoring system” as Miskolc city animated air quality scientist. The main purpose of the animated character is to educate public, in simple and accessible language. Dr. Sensor was designed by Eszter Török, Miskolc-based graphic designer, and he is voiced by Ferenc Frandl, actor. Dr. Sensor made his debuted at the handover ceremony, and he greets the visitors of the pmmonitoring.hu site.

System structure

The installation of the monitoring units was preceded by more than two years of preparatory work. The most accurate PM sensor was selected, after experts of the University of Miskolc tested all of the commercially available PM sensors. During its one-year test period, the performance of the sensor was evaluated through a comparison with measurements from the monitoring station of the National Air Quality Monitoring Network.

To eliminate humidity induced errors, a calibration factor was determined and each sensor was calibrated in a controlled climate chamber against a standard reference aerosol monitor. Thanks to the hardware and software developments, sensors can provide adequate data even in hard weather conditions. To find the ideal locations of the PM sensor network, adequate data was collected from all areas of the city. Thus, the city was divided into five intervention groups.

In the case of the reference sites, sensors were deployed at 3 automatic air quality monitoring stations, currently operating in the city, in cooperation with the operator of the system, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County Council. As basic network, city areas were designated that are located on the main axis of the city. “1. Urban Zone” includes areas located near to the main axis. During the designation of the “1. Urban Zone”, data collected both from suburb (individual heating system) and blocks-of-flats areas (district heating system), were taken into account. The sensors of the “2. Suburban Zone” are located on the suburban areas of the city. The monitoring sites of the “Rural Zone” were designated in the neighbouring settlements. Sensors will be installed in this zone in the next period.

After validation of raw data transmitted from the deployed monitoring units to the database, data has been further assessed, cleaned and analysed. The air pollution map of the city is based on the officially validated data, and the development of an air quality app is ongoing.

The data of the monitoring network will be available to the public in Miskolc from September 2nd 2021, on the pmmonitorinh.hu site.

More information: https://miskolc.pmmonitoring.hu/gyik

Why air quality is so important?

Based on a report of the European Environment Agency, air pollution is now considered to be the world’s largest environmental and health threat, and it was responsible for about 400.000 premature deaths in Europe in 2016. Unfortunately, Sajó Valley – involving Miskolc as well – has been found to be one of the most polluted places in Europe, especially during the heating season. In the framework of the HunAIRy LIFE integrated project, the University of Miskolc and Miskolc City Council have been working together to tackle this problem.

 Photos: László Mocsári, Viktória Doró