Experimental evaluation of the in-the-field capabilities of total-reflection X-ray fluorescence analysis to trace fine and ultrafine aerosol particles in populated areas

Osán, János; Börcsök, Endre; Czömpöly, Ottó; Dian, Csenge; Groma, Veronika; Stabile, Luca; Török, Szabina

doi:10.1016/j.sab.2020.105852

Cited by 20 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…The elemental mass per sample (i.e., the total elemental mass deposited in the entire carrier stripe of 20 mm length) was calculated for each size fraction considering the difference in total lengths of the stripes on the carriers and the total length of the impactor nozzles (50 mm) and the losses involved. Detection limits of 100 pg/m 3 for each impactor stage were reached using the model for transition metals in ambient aerosol particles [29]. Figure 3 shows an example of fairly good correspondence of most element size distributions for the two impactor designs.…”

Section: Size Resolved Element Quantificationmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…For comparison, field samples from the May impactor (see description below) have been measured with a lab-based TXRF system at EK [28,29]. It comprises a 50 W microfocus Mo-anode X-ray tube (Petrick, Bad Blankenburg, Germany), a Mo/Si multilayer monochromator (AXO, Dresden, Germany) for Mo-Kα excitation operated at 50 kV and 1 mA, and for our purposes, a 7 mm 2 silicon drift detector (KETEK, Munich, Germany) was used.…”

Section: (T)xrf Instrumentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The May impactor [34] was extended by EK to 9 stages (aerodynamic cut points at 0.07, 0.18, 0.29, 0.57, 1.13, 2.25, 4.5, 8.9, and 17.9 μm), and the sampling rate is 16.7 L/min [29]. Each stage establishes a jet through a slit nozzle of 50 mm length.…”

Section: Cascade Impactors and Collecting Substratesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantification of Element Mass Concentrations in Ambient Aerosols by Combination of Cascade Impactor Sampling and Mobile Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy

et al. 2021

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Quantitative chemical analysis of airborne particulate matter (PM) is vital for the understanding of health effects in indoor and outdoor environments, as well as for enforcing EU air quality regulations. Typically, airborne particles are sampled over long time periods on filters, followed by lab-based analysis, e.g., with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). During the EURAMET EMPIR AEROMET project, cascade impactor aerosol sampling is combined for the first time with on-site total reflection X-ray fluorescence (TXRF) spectroscopy to develop a tool for quantifying particle element compositions within short time intervals and even on-site. This makes variations of aerosol chemistry observable with time resolution only a few hours and with good size resolution in the PM10 range. The study investigates the proof of principles of this methodological approach. Acrylic discs and silicon wafers are shown to be suitable impactor carriers with sufficiently smooth and clean surfaces, and a non-destructive elemental mass concentration measurement with a lower limit of detection around 10 pg/m3 could be achieved. We demonstrate the traceability of field TXRF measurements to a radiometrically calibrated TXRF reference, and the results from both analytical methods correspond satisfactorily.

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Section: Size Resolved Element Quantificationmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: (T)xrf Instrumentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantification of Element Mass Concentrations in Ambient Aerosols by Combination of Cascade Impactor Sampling and Mobile Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy

et al. 2021

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“…Their sensitivity to environmental parameters (humidity, temperature, light), the stability and degradation over time are still not known thoroughly. In the scope of the AEROMET project [ 25 ], we have performed field measurements on 18–27 September 2018 in Cassino, Italy [ 26 ]. We sampled ambient aerosol near a busy street with several different types of aerosol monitoring instruments, including two identical Sharp low-cost aerosol sensor devices (referred to as JSI1 and JSI2) and Grimm Portable Laser Aerosol Spectrometer Model Mini-LAS 11-R.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Statistics of a Sharp GP2Y Low-Cost Aerosol PM Sensor Output Signals

Bučar

Malet

Stabile

et al. 2020

Sensors

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In this work, we characterise the performance of a Sharp optical aerosol sensor model GP2Y1010AU0F. The sensor was exposed to different environments: to a clean room, to a controlled atmosphere with known aerosol size distribution and to the ambient atmosphere on a busy city street. During the exposure, the output waveforms of the sensor pulses were digitised, saved and a following offline analysis enabled us to study the behaviour of the sensor pulse-by-pulse. A linear response of the sensor on number concentration of the monosized dispersed PSL particles was shown together with an almost linear dependence on particle diameters in the 0.4 to 4 micrometer range. The gathered data about the sensor were used to predict its response to an ambient atmosphere, which was observed simultaneously with a calibrated optical particle counter.

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“…The elemental composition of the model aerosols was characterised by combining a cascade impactor for PM sampling with Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (TXRF, Bruker TStar S4™, Germany) (Osán et al, 2020). A 13 stage low pressure cascade impactor (Dekati DLPI 10™, Finland) with particle size range from 30 nm to 10 µm was modified to sample at a rate of 10 L/min on smooth and clean commercial-grade acrylic discs with 30 mm diameter, suitable for TXRF.…”

Section: Chemical Characterisation Of Model Aerosolsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Facility for generation of ambient-like model aerosols in the laboratory: application in the intercomparison of automated PM monitors with the reference gravimetric method

Horender¹,

Auderset²,

Quincey³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Abstract. A new facility has been developed which allows for a stable and reproducible generation of ambient-like aerosols in the laboratory. The setup consists of multiple aerosol generators, a custom-made flow tube homogeniser, isokinetic sampling probes and a system to control aerosol temperature and humidity. Model aerosols containing elemental carbon, secondary organic matter from the photo-oxidation of α-pinene, inorganic salts such as ammonium sulphate and ammonium nitrate, mineral dust particles and water were generated at different environmental conditions and different number and mass concentrations. The aerosol physical and chemical properties were characterised with an array of experimental methods, including scanning mobility particle sizing, ion chromatography, total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, and thermo-optical analysis. The facility is very versatile and can find applications in the calibration and performance characterisation of aerosol instruments monitoring ambient air. In this study, we performed, as proof of concept, an intercomparison of three different commercial PM (particulate matter) monitors (TEOM 1405, DustTrak DRX 8533 and Fidas Frog) with the gravimetric reference method under three simulated environmental scenarios. The results are presented and compared to previous field studies. We believe that the laboratory-based method for simulating ambient aerosols presented here could provide in the future a useful alternative to time-consuming and expensive field campaigns, which are often required for instrument certification and calibration.

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Experimental evaluation of the in-the-field capabilities of total-reflection X-ray fluorescence analysis to trace fine and ultrafine aerosol particles in populated areas

Cited by 20 publications

References 41 publications

Quantification of Element Mass Concentrations in Ambient Aerosols by Combination of Cascade Impactor Sampling and Mobile Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Quantification of Element Mass Concentrations in Ambient Aerosols by Combination of Cascade Impactor Sampling and Mobile Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Statistics of a Sharp GP2Y Low-Cost Aerosol PM Sensor Output Signals

Facility for generation of ambient-like model aerosols in the laboratory: application in the intercomparison of automated PM monitors with the reference gravimetric method

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