ABSTRACT Air pollution, especially fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5), is a major public health and environmental issue in Indian cities, particularly during the winter months. This study used the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled with Chemistry (WRF-Chem v4.6) to simulate PM2.5 concentrations during January 2025 over Central India. The model was set up using MOZART gasphase chemistry and the MOSAIC aerosol module, including EDGAR-HTAP v2.2 for anthropogenic, MEGAN for biogenic, and NCAR (FINN) v1.5 for fire emissions. Meteorological fields were driven by NCEP/FNL operational global analysis data on 1°×1°grids prepared operationally every six hours, and boundary chemical conditions were sourced from CAM-Chem. Model performance was tested based on ground-based PM2.5 measurements from the CPCB database. Simulated hourly average concentrations were in satisfactory agreement with observations, with Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) ranging from 3.24 to 14.56 and Mean Fractional Bias (MFB) mostly within ±0.15, reflecting outstanding model performance. The model was also able to capture the spatial distribution and diurnal trends of PM2.5, reflecting morning and evening peak hours that correspond to traffic activity and shallow boundary layers. Overall, the results prove the suitability of WRF-Chem in simulating PM2.5 dynamics over Central India and validate its application for regional air quality evaluation and policy-making.
Kushwaha et al. (2026) studied this question.