Negligible influence of livestock contaminants and sampling system on ammonia measurements with cavity ring-down spectroscopy

TY - JOUR

T1 - Negligible influence of livestock contaminants and sampling system on ammonia measurements with cavity ring-down spectroscopy

AU - Kamp, Jesper Nørlem

AU - Chowdhury, Albarune

AU - Adamsen, Anders Peter S.

AU - Feilberg, Anders

PY - 2019

Y1 - 2019

N2 - Emission of ammonia (NH 3 ) is a ubiquitous problem due to the adverse effects of NH 3 on the environment and human health. The agricultural sector accounts for nearly all NH 3 emissions in Europe. Hence, technologies for the abatement of NH 3 emissions from this sector have been in strong demand in recent years. In order to document emissions and evaluate abatement technologies, there is a strong need for reliable NH 3 measurement methods. Photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) is often used to measure NH 3 concentrations, but recent research shows interference from compounds typically present in livestock production and during agricultural activities. In this work, the performance of cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) from Picarro, as an alternative to PAS, has been tested with respect to method validation under laboratory and field conditions. Potential interferences of 10 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on CRDS NH 3 measurement were tested with simultaneous VOC analysis performed by proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS). Both laboratory and field calibrations show excellent linearity over a large dynamic range of NH 3 concentrations. The analyzer shows a small humidity effect of up to a few ppb in the extreme case of a nearly water-saturated air stream. Apart from the negligible humidity dependency, no interferences of the tested VOCs were observed. Overall, the CRDS system performs satisfactory and is well suited for measurements of NH 3 emissions from livestock production.

AB - Emission of ammonia (NH 3 ) is a ubiquitous problem due to the adverse effects of NH 3 on the environment and human health. The agricultural sector accounts for nearly all NH 3 emissions in Europe. Hence, technologies for the abatement of NH 3 emissions from this sector have been in strong demand in recent years. In order to document emissions and evaluate abatement technologies, there is a strong need for reliable NH 3 measurement methods. Photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) is often used to measure NH 3 concentrations, but recent research shows interference from compounds typically present in livestock production and during agricultural activities. In this work, the performance of cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) from Picarro, as an alternative to PAS, has been tested with respect to method validation under laboratory and field conditions. Potential interferences of 10 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on CRDS NH 3 measurement were tested with simultaneous VOC analysis performed by proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS). Both laboratory and field calibrations show excellent linearity over a large dynamic range of NH 3 concentrations. The analyzer shows a small humidity effect of up to a few ppb in the extreme case of a nearly water-saturated air stream. Apart from the negligible humidity dependency, no interferences of the tested VOCs were observed. Overall, the CRDS system performs satisfactory and is well suited for measurements of NH 3 emissions from livestock production.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85065831536&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.5194/amt-12-2837-2019

DO - 10.5194/amt-12-2837-2019

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:85065831536

SN - 1867-1381

VL - 12

SP - 2837

EP - 2850

JO - Atmospheric Measurement Techniques

JF - Atmospheric Measurement Techniques

IS - 5

ER -