The four-wavelength Photoacoustic Aerosol Absorption Spectrometer (PAAS-4λ)
In this paper, the Photoacoustic Aerosol Absorption Spectrometer (PAAS-4 λ ) is introduced. PAAS-4 λ was specifically developed for long-term monitoring tasks in (unattended) air quality stations. It uses four wavelengths coupled to a single acoustic resonator in a compact and robust set-up. The ins...
| Published in: | Atmospheric Measurement Techniques |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2023
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2753-2023 https://amt.copernicus.org/articles/16/2753/2023/ |
| Summary: | In this paper, the Photoacoustic Aerosol Absorption Spectrometer (PAAS-4 λ ) is introduced. PAAS-4 λ was specifically developed for long-term monitoring tasks in (unattended) air quality stations. It uses four wavelengths coupled to a single acoustic resonator in a compact and robust set-up. The instrument has been thoroughly characterized and carefully calibrated in the laboratory using NO 2 /air mixtures and Nigrosin aerosol. It has an ultimate 1 σ detection limit below 0.1 Mm −1 , at a measurement precision and accuracy of 3 % and 10 %, respectively. In order to demonstrate the PAAS-4 λ suitability for long-term monitoring tasks, the instrument is currently validated at the air quality monitoring station Pallas in Finland, about 140 km north of the Arctic circle. A total of 11 months of PAAS-4 λ data from this deployment are presented and discussed in terms of instrument performance. Intercomparisons with the filter-based photometers of a continuous soot monitoring system (COSMOS), the Multi-Angle Absorption Photometer (MAAP), and Aethalometer (AE33) demonstrate the capabilities and value of PAAS-4 λ , as well as for the validation of the widely used filter-based instruments. |
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