Modeling particulate matter emissions indices at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

Particulate Matter (PM) emissions from aircrafts have been identified as possible contributors to global climate and local air quality changes. An objective of this study was to develop a predictive model for emissions indices (EI) of PM emitted from aircraft during normal operation given engine type and ambient conditions. A model that is scientifically meaningful was desirable as it could help guide follow-on activities in air quality monitoring at airports, Diagnostics, transformations, and manipulation of some variables suggested a linear model would be appropriate. Temperature, pressure, and a temperature-pressure interaction were key variables. Bootstrap confidence intervals for mean EI were computed since residuals were slightly heavy tailed --Abstract, page iii