Assessment of Spatiotemporal Changes of NO2 Using TROPOMI Sensor in Khuzestan Province, Iran

Background: Khuzestan province is one of the largest industrial provinces in Iran, with high air pollution. One of the main air pollutants is nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in the atmosphere, which is linked to several epidemiological and environmental effects. Thus, spatial and temporal monitoring of NO2 is crucial for land managers. So, the aim of this study was the spatiotemporal evaluation of NO2 in Khuzestan Province, Iran, using Sentinel 5 (TROPOMI). Methods: Initially, the amount of tropospheric NO2 concentration was estimated in each month. In the next step, using ArcMap software, the monthly average of tropospheric NO2 was extracted from 12 months. Moreover, the location of 100 important air pollutant industries in the Khuzestan Province was extracted using Google Earth image. Thus, using the monthly average NO2 concentrations and the location of the cities and industries, the monthly average pollution of this pollutant was extracted for the cities and industries. Finally, the cities and industries of air pollution in Khuzestan Province were prioritized based on of tropospheric NO2 concentration. Findings: The maximum concentrations of this gas was in Bavi, Ahvaz, Abadan, and Mahshahr cities; and respectively, this gas had the lowest values of NO2 in Izeh, Lali, and Baghmalek cities. Moreover, in the cold months of the year, Khorramshahr and Mahshahr had higher concentrations of NO2 in comparison to the warm months of the year. The results of the spatial analysis revealed that the highest concentration of NO2 was in the Farabi Petrochemical Company, Khuzestan Steel Company, Ghadir, and Razi Petrochemicals, respectively. Conclusion: According to the findings of this study, it can be deduced the influence of local emission sources of NO2 in Khuzestan Province is related to population density, high traffic of motor vehicles, and industrial activities.