Particulate matter is a growing threat to air quality and public health. Smaller types of particulate matter (PM), known as PM2.5 and PM10 particles, are especially damaging. These highly toxic air particles are small enough to be inhaled into respiratory systems simply through breathing. As these effects become increasingly understood, governments and authorities have been implementing tougher restrictions against particulate air pollution.
To effectively uphold these restrictions, authorities need an accurate understanding of air quality. This means being able to accurately gauge the concentration of airborne particulates within a certain area, and to determine the source of these impurities. Advanced elemental analysis technology can play an important role in this by enabling more accurate profiling of air particles.
Profiling pollution sources with X-ray fluorescence
X-ray fluorescence (XRF) is a non-destructive technology used for elemental analysis on the aerosols collected at air filters. The main advantage of XRF is that filters can be directly loaded in the spectrometer without any dissolution of the filter material. After analysis, the sample can still be analyzed further with other air quality analysis techniques.
The air-quality edition of our Epsilon 4 can analyze elemental concentration according to the requirements of the internationally accepted test method, EPA IO-3.3. Alongside this highly accurate particulate matter analysis, the spectrometer can also handle air filters from 25 mm to 52 mm.
The Epsilon 4 can be equipped with EPA IO-3.3-compliant factory calibration, enabling accurate analysis from the day of installation. If the 10-position carousel is not sufficient, Malvern Panalytical offers a 60-position sample changer to enable 24-hour operation without operator interference.
