Meghan Hodges
Air pollution can be measured in a variety of ways. The earliest devices used to measure pollution include rain gauges, Ringelmann charts, and simple soot and dust collectors known as deposit gauges. Modern methods include the use of drones, satellites, and lidar, as well as chemical and physical sensors that can be used to generate air quality indexes. These sensors can be used to build up maps of pollution over wide areas, and can be used for both indoor and outdoor environments.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Modern air pollution measurement | Automated |
| Devices | Absorbent test tubes (diffusion tubes), chemical and physical sensors, lidar, drones, satellites |
| Data use | Smartphone apps, maps of pollution over wide areas |
| Pollutants measured | Ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, radon gas, formaldehyde |
What You'll Learn
- Modern air pollution measurement is largely automated and carried out using many different devices and techniques
- Air pollution can be measured remotely, from the air, by lidar, drones, and satellites
- Each different component of air pollution has to be measured by a different process, piece of equipment, or chemical reaction
- The earliest devices used to measure pollution include rain gauges (in studies of acid rain), Ringelmann charts for measuring smoke, and simple soot and dust collectors known as deposit gauges
- Sensors can be used to measure common forms of air pollution: ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide
Modern air pollution measurement is largely automated and carried out using many different devices and techniques
There are a variety of analytical chemistry techniques used for measuring pollution, including gas chromatography; various forms of spectrometry, spectroscopy, and spectrophotometry; and flame photometry. Modern techniques also include the use of simple absorbent test tubes known as diffusion tubes, as well as highly sophisticated chemical and physical sensors that give almost real-time pollution measurements. These sensors are used to generate air quality indexes and can be used for both indoor and outdoor environments.
The majority of these sensors focus on measuring five common forms of air pollution: ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. Some measure less common pollutants such as radon gas and formaldehyde. These sensors were once expensive, but the 2010s saw a trend towards cheaper portable devices that can be worn by individuals to monitor their local air quality levels.
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Air pollution can be measured remotely, from the air, by lidar, drones, and satellites
Modern air pollution measurement is largely automated and carried out using many different devices and techniques. These range from simple absorbent test tubes known as diffusion tubes to highly sophisticated chemical and physical sensors that give almost real-time pollution measurements, which are used to generate air quality indexes. These sensors can be used for both indoor and outdoor environments and the majority focus on measuring five common forms of air pollution: ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. Some measure less common pollutants such as radon gas and formaldehyde.
Sensors like this were once expensive, but the 2010s saw a trend towards cheaper portable devices that can be worn by individuals to monitor their local air quality levels, which are now sometimes informally referred to as low-cost sensors (LCS).
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Each different component of air pollution has to be measured by a different process, piece of equipment, or chemical reaction
Modern air pollution measurement is largely automated and carried out using many different devices and techniques. These range from simple absorbent test tubes known as diffusion tubes to highly sophisticated chemical and physical sensors that give almost real-time pollution measurements, which are used to generate air quality indexes.
Air pollution is caused by many factors, including gases and particulates. The most common forms of air pollution are ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. Some sensors also measure less common pollutants such as radon gas and formaldehyde.
Air quality can also be measured remotely, from the air, by lidar, drones, and satellites, through methods such as gas filter correlation.
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The earliest devices used to measure pollution include rain gauges (in studies of acid rain), Ringelmann charts for measuring smoke, and simple soot and dust collectors known as deposit gauges
The earliest devices used to measure pollution include rain gauges, which were used in studies of acid rain. Rain gauges are a simple way to collect and measure the amount of rain that falls in a given area. They are still used today to monitor and study rainfall patterns and amounts.
Another early device is the Ringelmann chart, which was used to measure smoke. The Ringelmann chart is a simple, visual way to estimate the density of smoke. It consists of a series of black and white squares that gradually blend into shades of grey. By comparing the colour of the smoke to the chart, one can estimate its density.
Simple soot and dust collectors, known as deposit gauges, were also used to measure pollution. These devices collect soot and dust particles from the air, which can then be measured and analysed.
Modern air pollution measurement has evolved to include a range of sophisticated devices and techniques, such as diffusion tubes and chemical and physical sensors that provide almost real-time pollution measurements. These sensors are now accessible to individuals in the form of low-cost, portable devices that can be worn to monitor local air quality levels. Additionally, air quality can be measured remotely by lidar, drones, and satellites, with methods such as gas filter correlation.
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Sensors can be used to measure common forms of air pollution: ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide
Sensors like this were once expensive, but the 2010s saw a trend towards cheaper portable devices that can be worn by individuals to monitor their local air quality levels, which are now sometimes informally referred to as low-cost sensors (LCS). These sensors are part of a wider range of modern devices and techniques used to measure air pollution, which also includes simple absorbent test tubes known as diffusion tubes.
Air quality can also be measured remotely, from the air, by lidar, drones, and satellites, through methods such as gas filter correlation. Among the earliest satellite pollution monitoring efforts were GOME (Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment), which measured global (tropospheric) ozone levels from the ESA European Remote Sensing Satellite (ERS-2) in 1995, and NASA's MAPS (Mapping Pollution with Satellites), which measured the distribution of carbon monoxide in Earth's lower atmosphere, also in the 1990s.
The earliest devices used to measure pollution include rain gauges (in studies of acid rain), Ringelmann charts for measuring smoke, and simple soot and dust collectors known as deposit gauges. Each different component of air pollution has to be measured by a different process, piece of equipment, or chemical reaction. Analytical chemistry techniques used for measuring pollution include gas chromatography; various forms of spectrometry, spectroscopy, and spectrophotometry; and flame photometry.
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