It is a revolutionary new instrument that measures the Total Carbon (TC) content of suspended aerosol particles in real-time for laboratory research, field work, and routine air-quality monitoring applications.
• Continuous analysis of Total Carbon content of aerosol
• Combine with Aethalometer® to derive OC/EC
• Sampling time 20 min to 24 hours
• Uses ambient air as carrier gas• Rugged, All-Steel Construction
• Easy installation, operation and maintenance
MEASUREMENT PRINCIPLE
Two identical flow channels for sampling and analysis.Sample is collected on 47-mm quartz fiber filter in stainless-steel combustion chamber. At end of sampling timebase, collection flow is switched to second channel while first channel is analyzed. Collected sample is flash-heated to convert all Carbon to CO2. Ambient air is used as “analytical” carrier gas at low flow rate. The baseline level of CO2 in ambient air is determined before and after the heating cycle. Large pulse of CO2 in analytical flow is integrated over ambient baseline to determine Total Carbon content of sample.
“NO GLASS, NO GAS”
No glass. Chambers constructed entirely from stainless steel. Rugged FeCrAl alloy heating elements.
No gas. Uses ambient air as carrier: does not need any specialty gas supplies.
No catalyst.
DETERMINATION OF OC AND EC
BC data from Aethalometer AE33 is used to derive EC. OC is obtained by simple subtraction: OC = TC – EC.The relationship between BC and EC depends on aerosol composition and the thermal protocol used for ‘EC’ assignment.
COMBINATION WITH AE33 AETHALOMETER
Cable connection: TCA software receives Aethalometer data.
SAMPLING
Standard flow rate of 16.7 SLPM (1 m3/h), provided by closed-loop stabilized internal pump. Standard PM2.5 inlet is included. Sampled air stream must be non-condensing (RH < 90% at instrument temperature).Opening altitude 0 ~ 3000 m.Ambient meteorological sensor (P, T, RH) is included to control sampling flow to ambient volumetric conditions.
TIME RESOLUTION
Timebase for sampling and analysis is adjustable from 20 minutes to 24 hours. Default setting is 1 hour.
ANALYTICAL PERFORMANCE
Limit of Detection: 300 ng C/m³ (1-h timebase, 16.7 LPM flow) Range: 300 ng/m3 to 300.000 ng/m3 of Total Carbon
OPERATOR INTERFACE
21-cm color touch-screen with status indicator LED’s.
REMOTE MANAGEMENT
Network ready for remote management and data transfer.
QUICK-CHANGE ANALYTICAL CHAMBER
Modular for easy servicing, routine replacement of quartz sampling filter, or exchange of heating elements.
PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS