Inland Vessels Emission Inventory and the emission characteristics of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal in Jiangsu province

•Inland Vessels Emission Inventory of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal in Jiangsu province was established using activity-based approach.•Emission factors of PM10, PM2.5 and NOx were obtained via actual ship tests.•The air pollutant emission characteristics of vessels were systematically analyzed. Currently, air pollution from vessel exhaust emission is increasingly prominent. In particular, Jiangsu province, as a large inland waterway transportation province, has a large amount of ship emissions; however, the amount of such emissions remains unidentified. Considering the importance of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal for Jiangsu province and for the country, the inland vessel emission inventory of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal in Jiangsu province in 2014 was established using activity-based approach, the total annual emissions of particulate and gaseous pollutants were quantified, and the emission characteristics of vessels were also discussed. Dry cargo ships are the largest source of air pollutants, with ships whose gross tonnage is between 200 and 600tons having the greatest contribution to exhaust emission. The order of the emission contribution for each vessel operation condition was as follows: normal navigation>passing through the shipping-lockage>berthing>mooring. Vessels running on the fairway made the greatest contribution in the aspect of the spatial distribution. Except in February, the monthly emissions not from ships presented a relatively steady trend.