Evaluating the EPICC-Model for regional air quality simulation: a comparative study with CAMx and CMAQ
- 1Beijing Normal University (Beijing, China)
- 2Institute of Atmospheric Physics (Beijing, China)
- 3University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Beijing, China)
Abstract
This study presents a systematic evaluation of the EPICC-Model developed in China for regional PM 2.5 and MDA8 O ₃ simulations against established international models, using WRF meteorological fields and a multi-source integrated emission inventory. Results highlight the strengths of the EPICC-Model in several aspects: it achieves relatively high spatial consistency with measurements for PM 2.5 , with an annual index of agreement (IOA) of 0.80, and accurately captures pollution patterns in heavily polluted North China. It also demonstrates improved performance in simulating summer O ₃ peaks, reducing maximum bias by more than 20 µg m ⁻³ ; this performance may be partly associated with its inclusion of heterogeneous HONO formation and particulate nitrate photolysis. The model exhibits the highest hit rate (45.6 %) for MDA8 O ₃ pollution events exceeding 160 µg m ⁻³ and successfully reproduces persistent pollution episodes. However, all models share common limitations, including insufficient capability in reproducing heavy pollution episodes, systematic underestimation of SO42-, and uncertainties in SOA-related OC simulations. Future improvements should focus on refining secondary aerosol chemistry and emission inventories and further evaluating the representation of vertical turbulent mixing under stable boundary-layer conditions. This study benchmarks the performance of the EPICC-Model against established chemical transport models (CTMs) and identifies priorities for its further development and regional application.
Versions
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BibTeX
@article{lou2026evaluating,
title = {{Evaluating the EPICC-Model for regional air quality simulation: a comparative study with CAMx and CMAQ}},
author = {Mengjie Lou and Qizhong Wu and Wending Wang and Huansheng Chen and Kai Cao and Xiaohan Fan and Dingyue Liang and Fenfen Yu and Jiating Zhang and Wei Wang and Zifa Wang},
journal = {Geoscientific Model Development},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.5194/gmd-19-9651-2026},
url = {https://gmd.copernicus.org/articles/19/9651/2026/},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Evaluating the EPICC-Model for regional air quality simulation: a comparative study with CAMx and CMAQ
AU - Mengjie Lou
AU - Qizhong Wu
AU - Wending Wang
AU - Huansheng Chen
AU - Kai Cao
AU - Xiaohan Fan
AU - Dingyue Liang
AU - Fenfen Yu
AU - Jiating Zhang
AU - Wei Wang
AU - Zifa Wang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/12
JO - Geoscientific Model Development
DO - 10.5194/gmd-19-9651-2026
UR - https://gmd.copernicus.org/articles/19/9651/2026/
AB - This study presents a systematic evaluation of the EPICC-Model developed in China for regional PM 2.5 and MDA8 O ₃ simulations against established international models, using WRF meteorological fields and a multi-source integrated emission inventory. Results highlight the strengths of the EPICC-Model in several aspects: it achieves relatively high spatial consistency with measurements for PM 2.5 , with an annual index of agreement (IOA) of 0.80, and accurately captures pollution patterns in heavily polluted North China. It also demonstrates improved performance in simulating summer O ₃ peaks, reducing maximum bias by more than 20 µg m ⁻³ ; this performance may be partly associated with its inclusion of heterogeneous HONO formation and particulate nitrate photolysis. The model exhibits the highest hit rate (45.6 %) for MDA8 O ₃ pollution events exceeding 160 µg m ⁻³ and successfully reproduces persistent pollution episodes. However, all models share common limitations, including insufficient capability in reproducing heavy pollution episodes, systematic underestimation of SO42-, and uncertainties in SOA-related OC simulations. Future improvements should focus on refining secondary aerosol chemistry and emission inventories and further evaluating the representation of vertical turbulent mixing under stable boundary-layer conditions. This study benchmarks the performance of the EPICC-Model against established chemical transport models (CTMs) and identifies priorities for its further development and regional application.
SN - 1991-9603
ER -