Predicting particulate matter for better traffic management and climate protection Braunschweig: Combined Investigation of Particulate Matter and Mobility (KoFeMo) launched at research intersection

Particulate matter is the air pollutant with the greatest impact on our health and is also harmful to the climate. In a research project, Technische Universität Braunschweig is investigating the temporal and spatial exposure to particulate matter and its dynamics at the DLR research site in Braunschweig and the neighbouring urban district. The aim is to develop methods to improve the characterisation of air quality in urban regions and to derive measures to improve it through intelligent traffic flow control systems.

Although the current limits for particulate matter (PM 10/PM 2.5) are largely met in Germany, particulate matter and ultrafine particulate matter are the air pollutants with the greatest impact on our health and have a major influence on air quality in urban areas. Motor vehicles, with their emissions from exhaust, brakes and tyres, are a major source of particulate matter, which is also influenced by environmental factors such as wind, temperature stratification, precipitation, etc. There is therefore a great need to measure and predict this particulate pollution in relation to traffic and weather.

Scientists from TU Braunschweig, together with colleagues from DLR and industrial partners, are therefore developing an improved spatially and temporally resolved description of air quality in urban, polluted regions with reference to the emission sources of road traffic. The “KoFeMo” project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs with a total of 2,930,803 euros as part of the mFUND innovation initiative.

Based on scalable and mobile air quality measurement systems, horizontal and vertical measurements of particulate matter pollution and influencing environmental factors will be carried out. A simulation framework developed in parallel will be used to predict particulate matter dynamics and, together with traffic flow modelling at the DLR research intersection, to derive efficient measures for traffic flow control. The recorded and generated data will be made freely available on publicly accessible platforms, e.g. the Mobilithek.

Project data

The joint research project “Kombinierte Untersuchung von Feinstaub und Mobilität“ (KoFeMo) (Combined Investigation of Particulate Matter and Mobility) started on 1 July 2024 and ends on 30 June 2027 and is coordinated by the Institute for Particle Technology at TU Braunschweig. The project team also includes the following institutions: TU Braunschweig – Institute of Flight Guidance and Institute of Computational Modelling in Civil Engineering, DLR – Institute of Transportation Systems, Füllner & Partner GmbH, Novel Sense UG, Industrieelektronik Brandenburg GmbH and IAV GmbH.

About the mFUND of the BMDV

As part of the mFUND innovation initiative, the BMDV has been funding data-based research and development projects for the digital and networked mobility of the future since 2016. Project funding is complemented by active professional networking between stakeholders from politics, business, administration and research, and by the provision of open data on the Mobilithek. Further information is available at www.mFUND.de.