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Evaluation of continuous formaldehyde measurements in ambient air
Citation:
Whitehill, A., R. Long, AND S. Kaushik. Evaluation of continuous formaldehyde measurements in ambient air. Presented at AGU Fall Meeting 2018, Washington, DC, December 10 - 14, 2018.
Impact/Purpose:
The U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development has been involved in the continuing evaluation, analysis, and comparison of commercially available continuous formaldehyde measurements, as well as the promotion of novel technologies for ambient air and source emissions monitoring applications. We present results from our ongoing evaluation and intercomparison of newer formaldehyde measurement technologies in both controlled laboratory experiments and ambient air.
Description:
Formaldehyde is an important hazardous air pollutant (HAP) that is a leading driver for HAP-related cancer risk in the United States. It is emitted directly by numerous anthropogenic and natural sources, and formed as a secondary product from volatile organic compounds (VOCs) photooxidation. Formaldehyde is a significant source of radicals in the atmosphere that result in ozone and particulate matter (PM) formation. Despite its significance, routine measurements of formaldehyde in regulatory networks rely EPA Compendium Method TO-11a, which is based on HPLC analysis of derivatized, time-averaged cartridge samples. The U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development has been involved in the continuing evaluation, analysis, and comparison of commercially available continuous formaldehyde measurements, as well as the promotion of novel technologies for ambient air and source emissions monitoring applications. Ongoing evaluation includes comparison of four continuous infrared spectroscopic instruments using different technologies (two based on direct absorption, one based on cavity ringdown, and one based on photoacoustic spectroscopy), as well as comparison to HPLC and GC-MS methods, including EPA Compendium Method TO-11a. We present results from our ongoing evaluation and intercomparison of newer formaldehyde measurement technologies in both controlled laboratory experiments and ambient air.
URLs/Downloads:
Evaluation of continuous formaldehyde measurements in ambient air (PDF, NA pp, 1944 KB, about PDF)https://fallmeeting.agu.org › 2018
