Photochemical Smog Modelling Using the Air Pollution Chemical Transport Model (TAPM-CTM) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

This paper describes the application of the air pollution model (TAPM-CTM) for photochemical airshed modelling in the Ho Chi Minh region. The model was developed by the Commonwealth Scientific and Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia, and incorporates both a prognostic meteorological component and photochemical component. Based on the emission inventory developed by Vietnam National University, simulation of meteorological and chemical transport dispersion processes for air quality in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) is performed using TAPM-CTM. The model performance is evaluated using publicly available measured meteorological data at Ho Chi Minh City airport and air quality data as measured by the Hydro-meteorological Center of Southern Region and our research team at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Science. The model is then applied to simulate a 1-month period in the dry season to determine the extent of the photochemical pollution in Ho Chi Minh City and the surrounding areas. The results show that under the north easterly prevailing wind in this period, the high pollution is more likely to be experienced in the south west of Ho Chi Minh in the Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre and Vinh Long provinces. It is recommended that monitoring stations should be set up in these provinces to monitor the peak ozone events that are formed due to transport of precursors from Ho Chi Minh City. The results show that TAPM-CTM performed well as applied to the Ho Chi Minh City airshed region and is a promising tool to study scenario emission for air quality management in this city and the surrounding areas.