AAAR 36th Annual Conference October 16 - October 20, 2017 Raleigh Convention Center Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Abstract View
Black Carbon Estimates from Optical Carbon Analysis of Federal Reference Method Teflon Filters
Paige Presler-Jur, PRAKASH DORAISWAMY, Oliver Rattigan, H. Dirk Felton, RTI International
Abstract Number: 497 Working Group: Carbonaceous Aerosols in the Atmosphere
Abstract Black carbon (BC), a by-product of incomplete fuel combustion, contributes adversely to human health, visibility, and climate impacts. In this study, we present estimates of black carbon from optical carbon analysis of federal reference method (FRM) Teflon filters. We build upon our earlier work that used a Magee OT21 transmissometer to evaluate mass absorption efficiency of samples previously collected as part of the Chemical Speciation Network (CSN). As part of this work, we present results from ongoing optical carbon analysis of FRM filters for samples collected in New York State as part of the routine FRM network. We evaluate the added benefit of doing a filter-specific initial transmittance analysis in BC estimates. We then compare BC estimates from these measurements against elemental carbon (EC) measurements from the CSN samples as well as against BC data from absorption measurements made by the aethalometer at selected sites. The sites include both urban and rural sites, including a remote background site with typically very low BC concentrations. The analysis examines the utility of the optical analysis, its relationship to commonly used thermal optical EC analysis, and the applicability for clean environments.