Combustion Aerosols

Stationary combustion sources such as those burning coal, fuel oil, biomass, and waste, are significant sources of combustion aerosols. Mobile sources from internal combustion (IC) engines burning gasoline and diesel are also a significant source of primary particles.  Combustion sources can generate small particles ( <30nm) and close to the source such particles may be present in high concentrations. Depending on the concentration, particles can agglomerate to form larger particle sizes.  Time and size resolved measurements are therefore important in determining the nature of combustion generated aerosols. The portability and functionality of NPS 500 spectrometer makes it an ideal instrument for detecting (CPC mode) and characterising (SMPS mode) aerosols generated by combustion sources.

Combustion particles can be important airborne pollutants, particularly in urban environments.   To properly assess the impact on health and the general environment it is important to determine the presence of potentially hazardous chemicals in particulate matter. For example they some have been shown to contain bio available heavy metals, transition metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH),  dioxins  and other hazardous chemicals. Depending on the source of particulate matter, and a number of physical and chemical processes which may vary over time and space, the distribution of chemicals can vary significantly across the size distribution of aerosol particles. The wide size range and size resolving capability of Nano-ID® Select make it a perfect instrument for investigating and determining the chemical nature of combustion generated aerosols.

Products that are relevant for quantification:

The Nano-ID Select is a wide-range sampler and is unique in that it spans the entire aerosol range from 2 nm up to 20 μm. Particles are collected simultaneously using both inertial deposition and diffusion, and separated into 12 size channels. Read More...

The Nano-ID NPS500 sets a new standard for high sensitivity and selectivity aerosol measurements. It provides the ability to measure particle size distributions over a range of 5 nm to 500 nm with 128 user-selectable channels. Read More...