Mitigating Built Environment Air Pollution by Green Systems: An In-Depth Review

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

This review examines the potential of green systems such as green walls, to reduce atmospheric pollutants like particulate matter (PM), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and carbon dioxide (CO2).

The study analyses 44 recent studies and highlights the efficiency of various green technologies and plant species in indoor and outdoor settings. The manuscript is interesting, well-organized, and easy to read. 

As minor revisions, I would like to point out: 

- Figure 1 is not very clear and its resolution is not good.

- As a suggestion, I think a bibliometric map of relevant terms could have been included using a tool such as VOSViewer or similar.

 

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

See attached

Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The paper presents an interesting and very useful review on green systems and their role in mitigating air pollution.

The entire paper is well written, following the academic and scientific rules. It fits the journal main topics.

The introduction highlights the importance of such studies, the necessity and opportunity of the present one and its novelty over similar older studies.

The research methodology is very well described and detailed. Also, it proposes a similar approach to other studies on different topics. 

The main part, presenting different green technologies, is easy to understand, everything being explained in high details. Also, figures and tables help a lot, although, the figures could be more detailed (some pointing leaders, like those in figure 7, to most important parts described in the text). In this regard, some real images of the presented green systems could improve the review, especially for those unfamiliar readers.

Comparing practical (in lab and external) and theoretical results is a good addition and a good starting point for future research or even for real life applications in similar conditions / environments.

Figure 9 should be moved to the paragraph it refers to.

Where are 2 or more similar references in a figure, please indicate also the year, so that it is easier to identify the specific article (see fig. 9, 10).

The discussions section and the conclusions are relevant for the findings, inline with the present literature and very useful.

By adding the limitations and some recommendations to this study, the authors help everybody involved in scientific research, urban regeneration or civil engineering works.

Comments on the Quality of English Language

The quality of English language is fine, minor issues like spacing, alignment being detected.

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx