Grantee Research Project Results
Development of a reference method for open-path remote sensing of air toxics
EPA Grant Number: R840426Title: Development of a reference method for open-path remote sensing of air toxics
Investigators: Stutz, Jochen , Polidori, Andrea , Low, Jason , Pikelnaya, Olga
Institution: University of California Los Angeles , South Coast Air Quality Management District
EPA Project Officer: Chung, Serena
Project Period: May 1, 2022 through April 30, 2025 (Extended to April 30, 2027)
Project Amount: $798,825
RFA: Measurement and Monitoring Methods for Air Toxics and Contaminants of Emerging Concern in the Atmosphere (2021) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Watersheds , Endocrine Disruptors , Environmental Engineering , Air Quality and Air Toxics
Description:
Open-path optical remote sensing (OP-ORS) technologies offer unique advantages to monitor concentrations and emissions of air toxics at facility fencelines and on the neighborhood scale. However, the lack of best practices for the operation, standardized quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) procedures, and validation of OP-ORS systems has inhibited their widespread use for regulatory purposes.
Objective:
The objective of this project is to develop an open-source reference instrument and methodology for operation, validation, and QA/QC of OP-ORS monitoring of VOCs and other air toxics. This work is essential to firmly establish OP-ORS as a reliable and trusted tool to monitor VOC and air toxic releases from industrial facilities and for community air quality monitoring of these compounds.
Approach:
We propose to 1) Design and build a portable open-path reference instrument for accurate detection and quantification of benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene, xylenes, naphthalene, and formaldehyde below the acute and chronic health thresholds; 2) Validate the reference OP-ORS system with analytical methods used by South Coast AQMD and other air quality agencies; 3) Deploy the reference system in parallel to a current state-of-the-art OP-ORS system at a local refinery in the Los Angeles Air Basin to develop and test validation protocols; 4) Develop guidance for best practices for operation, QA/QC, and field validation for OP-ORS observations.
Expected Results:
The design of the reference OP-ORS system and other associated QA/QC tools developed during this project will be made publicly available. This will allow state and local air quality agencies to adopt this system for their current and future regulatory applications. The outcome of this work will provide state and local air quality regulators the means to standardize OP-ORS data acquisition and reporting, and assure that the collected data is of the appropriate quality through common validation, maintenance and other quality assurance procedures. This will benefit Environmental Justice communities in neighborhoods adjacent to petrochemical and other industrial sources of VOC and air toxic compounds. The proposed work responds to the RFP by advancing “...measurement techniques for real time, continuous measurements of concentrations ...” and improving “... stationary or mobile near source measurement methods for quantifying emission rates of fugitive emissions.”
Publications and Presentations:
Publications have been submitted on this project: View all 1 publications for this projectSupplemental Keywords:
air toxics monitoring, facility emission measurements, fenceline reference method
Progress and Final Reports:
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.