Sizing Small Sulfuric Acid Particles with an Ultrafine Particle Condensation Nucleus Counter

The sizing capability of an ultrafine particle condensation nucleus counter (which uses butanol as the condensing fluid) equipped with pulse height analysis was evaluated in terms of particle composition for sulfuric acid aerosol and sulfuric acid aerosol to which gas-phase ammonia had been added. The response of the counter depended on composition for a range of particle sizes when the water partial pressure was low. For water partial pressures < 5 Torr and for particles > 4 nm in diameter, the response (pulse heights) of the instrument to particles of a given size was substantially different for sulfuric acid particles and those that were neutralized with ammonia. For water partial pressures > 5 Torr, however, neutralizing the particles with ammonia had little effect on pulse height distributions. For particles smaller than 4 nm diameter the pulse heights were insensitive to exposure to ammonia.     

Investigation of Surface Properties of Ultrafine Particles by Application of a Multistep Condensation Nucleus Counter

The fate of atmospheric ultrafine particles is determined by their size, chemical composition, and especially by their physical and chemical surface properties. To characterize the surface of ultrafine particles, their behavior as condensation nuclei can be used. Monodisperse ultra-fine particles with different surface structures were investigated by observing the onset of droplet formation at a fixed electrical mobility diameter. Droplet growth was detected by application of a multistep condensation nucleus counter (CNC). The particles were generated under well-controlled conditions and monodisperse fractions were obtained using an electrostatic classifier. For studying the influence of changes in the surface structure, ultrafine sulfuric acid droplets were coated with different organic materials. Different surface films required different supersaturations for droplet growth depending on the molecular structure and layer thickness of the material used for coating. Therefore it was concluded that certain compounds, enriched on the particle surface, affect condensation of water vapor in such a way that higher supersaturations are required in comparison to the particle core material. Additionally, it was observed that remarkably high supersaturations of water vapor were required for condensation on particles consisting of the following materials: metals, carbon, and Aerosil (spherical silica particles).     

Characterization of a Modified Expansion Condensation Particle Counter for Detection of Nanometer-Sized Particles

A newly developed condensation particle counter provides measurements of aerosol particle number densities for size diameters as low as 3 nm. This Expansion Condensation Particle Counter (ECPC) operates based on fast adiabatic expansion with specialized detection and evaluation of the temporal development of light scattered by the ensemble of growing droplets. In its new configuration the ECPC has been modified such that a previously needed calibration factor became obsolete. In this article the new design is described which now includes a fast pressure sensor for monitoring the pressure drop inside the measurement chamber. Extensive laboratory experiments for characterizing the ECPC are described where sulfuric acid droplets with diameters between ～2.5 nm and 23 nm have been utilized. Water as well as butanol are demonstrated to be suitable working fluids. One experiment using tungsten oxide (WOx) particles shows that a 50% cut-off size diameter as low as 2.5 nm can be reached for this ECPC with a detection efficiency of several percent for particles as small as 1.4 nm. High and low supersaturations are experimentally examined and the corresponding different cut-off sizes are obtained. Measurements of ambient urban air in Mainz (Germany) obtained by this ECPC are juxtaposed to those from a TSI UCPC 3025A with satisfactory agreement. Similarly, in-situ data recorded with two ECPC units in the city of Isfahan (Iran) are shown to demonstrate the suitability of the technique for traffic related pollution measurements. Also, in future applications coarse information on the chemical nature of nucleated particles can be obtained by simultaneously using various condensing liquids in different channels of the ECPC setup.     

An Ultrafine,Water-Based Condensation Particle Counter and its Evaluation under Field Conditions

An ultrafine, water-based condensation particle counter (U-WCPC, TSI Model 3786) has been compared to a butanol-based ultrafine counter (U-BCPC, TSI Model 3025) for measurement of atmospheric and freeway-tunnel aerosols. The U-WCPC utilizes a warm, wet-walled growth tube to activate and grow particles through water condensation in a laminar-flow. It has an aerosol sampling rate of 0.3 L/min, and a nominal detection limit near 3 nm. Several field comparisons were made to the butanol-based instrument with the same nominal detection limit. For measurements of size-selected aerosols with diameters of 5 nm and larger the two instruments generally agreed, with a mean response within 5%. At 3 nm particle size differences were observed, and these differences varied with the data set. Measurements of ambient aerosol in Boulder, Colorado showed higher counting efficiency at 3 nm with the U-BCPC, while in a California freeway tunnel the opposite trend was observed, with higher counting efficiencies at 3 nm observed by the U-WCPC. For direct measurement of atmospheric aerosols, the two types of instruments yielded equivalent concentrations, independent of particle number concentration.     

A Laminar-Flow,Water-Based Condensation Particle Counter (WCPC)

A new water-based condensation particle counter (WCPC) is presented. The WCPC is a thermally diffusive, laminar flow instrument. Condensational enlargement is achieved through the introduction of a saturated airflow into a “growth tube” with wetted walls held at a temperature higher than that of the entering flow. An unsheathed, 1 L/min instrument utilizing this principle has been evaluated with various aerosols. The particle size detected with an efficiency of 50% is at or below 4.8 nm for particles sampled from vehicular emissions or ambient air, and for various laboratory-generated inorganic salts. The cut point is higher for the organic materials tested, ranging from 8 nm to 30 nm depending on the compound and purity level. An empirically determined dead-time correction factor is applied to the coincidence correction, which allows extension of the single-count mode to higher concentrations. The counting efficiencies for 80 nm oil and salt aerosols are equal, and above 97% for concentrations approaching 10 ⁵ cm ^?3 . When subject to a step-fucntion change in input concentration the time required to attain 90% of the final value, including a 0.5 s lag, is 1.3 s. The corresponding exponential time constant is 0.35 s. The WCPC evaluated here is marketed as the TSI Model 3785.     

Inter-Comparison of a Fast Mobility Particle Sizer and a Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer Incorporating an Ultrafine Water-Based Condensation Particle Counter

An Ultrafine Water-based Condensation Particle Counter (UWCPC), a Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS) incorporating an UWCPC, and a Fast Mobility Particle Sizer (FMPS) were deployed to determine the number and size distribution of ultrafine particles. Comparisons of particle number concentrations measured by the UWCPC, SMPS, and FMPS were conducted to evaluate the performance of the two particle sizers using ambient particles as well as lab generated artificial particles. The SMPS number concentration was substantially lower than the FMPS (FMPS/SMPS = 1.56) measurements mainly due to the diffusion losses of particles in the SMPS. The diffusion loss corrected SMPS (C-SMPS) number concentration was on average ～ 15% higher than the FMPS data (FMPS/C-SMPS = 0.87). Good correlation between the C-SMPS and FMPS was also observed for the total particle number concentrations in the size range 6 nm to 100 nm measured at a road-side urban site (r² = 0.91). However, the particle size distribution measured by the C-SMPS was quite different from the size distribution measured by the FMPS. An empirical correction factor for each size bin was obtained by comparing the FMPS data to size-segregated UWCPC number concentrations for atmospheric particles. The application of the correction factor to the FMPS data (C-FMPS) greatly improved the agreement of the C-SMPS and C-FMPS size distributions. The agreement of the total particle concentrations also improved to well within 10% (C-FMPS/C-SMPS = 0.95).     

Detection Efficiency of a Water-Based TSI Condensation Particle Counter 3785

In this article we present observations on the detection efficiency of a recently developed TSI 3785 Water Condensation Particle Counter (WCPC). The instrument relies on activation of sampled particles by water condensation. The supersaturation is generated by directing a saturated airflow into a “growth tube,” in which the mass transfer of water vapor is faster than heat transfer. This results in supersaturated conditions with respect to water vapor in the centerline of a “growth tube.” In this study, the cut-off diameter, that is, the size, where 50% of the sampled particles are successfully activated, varied from 4 to 14 nm for silver particles as a function of temperature difference between the saturator and the growth tube. The solubility of the sampled particles to water played an important role in the detection efficiency. Cut-off diameters for ammonium sulphate and sodium chloride particles were 5.1 and 3.6–3.8 nm, respectively at nominal operation conditions. Corresponding cut-off diameter for hydrophobic silver particles was 5.8 nm.     

Calibration of the TSI 3760 Condensation Nucleus Counter for Nonstandard Operating Conditions

The counting efficiency of the TSI 3760 condensation nucleus counter was tested for operation at (a) reduced flow rates and (b)reduced pressures. Circumstances often dictate that these conditions are encountered in sampling atmospheric aerosols. Results indicate that the counting efficiency of the instrument for particles in the range of 0.02–0.1 μm in diameter is not attenuated in operation at flow rates between 0.2 and 1.4 L/min. Furthermore, there does not appear to be any attenuation in the instrument's counting efficiency when operated at pressures between roughly 250 mb and atmospheric pressure.     

Counting Efficiency of the TSI Model 3020 Condensation Nucleus Counter

The counting efficiency of the TSI model 3020 condensation nucleus counter (CNC) was determined as a function of aerosol flow rate and trigger level using aerosols of known size and an aerosol electrometer. When the aerosol flow rate dropped from 300 to 200 mL/min, counting efficiencies increased significantly in the single-particle counting mode for particles with diameter < 20 nm while those for larger particles remained constant. However, the photometric mode counting efficiency for particles with diameter > 20 nm increased and exceeded unity. When the aerosol flow rate was reduced to 100 mL/min, the counting efficiencies for both counting modes decreased regardless of particle size. Varying the trigger level of the CNC did not influence the photometric mode counting efficiency. However, the counting efficiency of the single-particle counting mode increased with decreasing trigger level, especially for particles < 20 nm in diameter. Characteristics for individual instruments need to be measured because counting efficiencies of two CNCs with the same trigger level and flow rate were not identical.     

Dependence of the Performance of TSI 3020 Condensation Nucleus Counter on Pressure,Flow Rate,and Temperature

A theoretical study has been carried out to investigate the performance of the TSI 3020 condensation nucleus counter (CNC) at various pressures and flow rates by assuming a parabolic velocity profile in the condenser tube and solving the heat and mass transfer equations using the finite difference method. Calculations have been performed for pressures ranging from 0.03 to 10 atm and sampling flow rates from 0.5 to 50 mL/s. The results indicate that the counting efficiency of the CNC is a function of pressure and flow rate due to changes in heat and mass transfer rates. The counting efficiency can be correlated with a single parameter, ζ, which combines the effects due to pressure, sampling flow rate, and the length and diameter of the condenser tube. The cut size of the instrument, Dp₅₀, defined as the particle size at which the counting efficiency is 50%, has been found to vary with pressures, reaching a minimum at a pressure of approximately 1 atm. The cut size of the CNC has been found to be most sensitive to the temperature difference between the saturator and condenser but relatively insensitive to the flow rate and the saturator temperature.     

Measurement of Ultrafine Particles: A Comparison of Two Handheld Condensation Particle Counters

The objective of this study was to compare two real-time condensation particle counters for measurement of number concentrations of ultrafine particles (UFPs). The comparison is based on the data from side-by-side measurements conducted in several locations, both indoors and outdoors. CPC 3007 and P-Trak? 8525 manufactured by TSI (instruments A and B, respectively) were used simultaneously. They measure particles in sizes from 0.01 to greater than 1 μ m and 0.02 to greater than 1 μ m, respectively. The results reveal a good correlation between the two instruments. The ratios of measured aerosol concentrations varied from 0.81 to 1.17, which implies that in all data sets the difference between the two instruments was less than ± 20%. About 63% of the results were in the range of ± 10%, and about 44% showed differences less than ± 5%. The maximum particle concentration detected by instrument A was approximately 105,000 particles cm ^{? 3} and the minimum was about 230 particles cm ^{? 3} . Because of the lower particle size threshold for instrument A, it was expected that this instrument should never show concentrations lower than those detected by instrument B. This was the case in most of the measurement series. The results revealed that the concentration of UFPs changes rapidly, especially in the presence of a local UFP source. A sampling interval of 1 min is sufficient to provide substantial information about the change in concentration level.     

Fast Mixing Condensation Nucleus Counter: Application to Rapid Scanning Differential Mobility Analyzer Measurements

Condensation nucleus counters (CNCs) exhibit slower time response than expected due to mixing effects within the detector.This mixing produces an exponential distribution of delay times with a characteristic mixing time m that ranges from 0.1 s to 0.9 s for commonly used instruments and limits their usefulness for measuring rapidly changing aerosols. Moreover, when used as detectors in the scanning electrical mobility spectrometer (SEMS; also known as scanning mobility particle sizer, SMPS), CNCs limit the speed with which size distribution measurements can be made. In order to overcome this limitation, a new, fast-response mixing CNC (MCNC) has been developed and characterized. The time response of this new detector and TSI Models 3025 and 3010 CNCs has been measured using a spark source to generate an aerosol pulse. The mixing induced response smearing of this new detector, m , of this instrument is 0.058 s, which is significantly shorter than either of the other instruments tested. Its lower detection limit is about 5 nm diameter. The high aerosol flow rate of the MCNC (0.65 l min -1 ), fast time response, and low detection limit make it an ideal detector for SEMS/SMPS measurements. Using this MCNC as a detector for the SEMS, size distribution measurements over the 5 nm to 140 nm range have been made in 3 s with minimal distortion. The size distribution of a coagulation aerosol was effectively recovered by deconvolution with scans as short as 1 s. Uncertainties in the 1 s scans result, in part, from electronics problems in the scanning DMA.     

超细硫酸沙丁胺醇药物颗粒的制备与表征

以沙丁胺醇和硫酸为反应物,在异丙醇溶液中采用反应结晶法制备超细硫酸沙丁胺醇颗粒。对影响产物粒度和产率的因素,如:硫酸浓度、反应温度、搅拌转速、反应时间等进行了系统研究。实验结果表明:当硫酸浓度为1.0mol.L-1、反应温度为15℃、搅拌转速为900r.min-1、反应时间为10min时,可以得到短轴为50~60nm、长径比为20~35且粒度分布较窄的针状硫酸沙丁胺醇颗粒。产品经IR、XRD等验证,符合中国、英国药典的要求,纯度大于98%。     

Nd2BaCuO5超微粒子的制备与表征

以Nd2O3、Ba(NO3)2和CuO为原料，采用微乳液法合成了Nd2BaCuO5超微粒子。用X射线衍射仪(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)、BET法及直流电阻电桥对粉体进行了表征。结果表明，制备的超微粒子为钙钛矿型晶体。粉体经600℃灼烧后，其平均粒径为14．9nm；粉体经700℃灼烧后，其平均粒径为46．6nm。粉体经700℃灼烧后，在700℃时其电导率比常温时提高4个数量级。     

Minimizing Concentration Effects in Water-Based,Laminar-Flow Condensation Particle Counters

Concentration effects in water condensation systems, such as used in the water-based condensation particle counter, are explored through numeric modeling and direct measurements. Modeling shows that the condensation heat release and vapor depletion associated with particle activation and growth lowers the peak supersaturation. At higher number concentrations, the diameter of the droplets formed is smaller, and the threshold particle size for activation is higher. This occurs in both cylindrical and parallel plate geometries. For water-based systems, we find that condensational heat release is more important than vapor depletion. We also find that concentration effects can be minimized through use of smaller tube diameters, or more closely spaced parallel plates. Experimental measurements of droplet diameter confirm modeling results.

© 2013 American Association for Aerosol Research     

气溶胶用石墨/白碳黑超细复合粒子的制备及表征

通过对石墨/白碳黑复合粒子的制备及性能的分析测试研究,表明石墨复合粒子较纯石墨粉具有更好的分散性、更大的比表面积及孔容,更高的悬浮稳定性及红外吸收特性。     

The History of Condensation Nucleus Counters

Condensation of supersaturated vapors has been used for more than a century to grow small aerosol particles to sizes that can be detected optically. This paper discusses the history of instruments that use condensation to detect particles. I divide this history into two main sections. The first of these focuses on the development of expansion-type instruments including the ''dust counters'' in which John Aitken played the decisive role and ''photoelectric nucleus counters'' primarily by L. W. Pollak and coworkers. The second section deals with the development of steady-flow condensation nucleus counters (CNCs) in which Jean Bricard and coworkers played the decisive role. The importance of calibration methodologies is also pointed out. Refinements by instrumentation manufacturers and many aerosol scientists have led to the reliable, accurate instruments that are widely used today.     

Preparation of Ultrafine Zirconia Particles

Ultrafine ZrO₂ particles have been prepared via a new sol-gel process. This process involves the addition of excess C₂H₄O into the aqueous ZrOCl₂ solution and reacting the mixture at room temperature; a glassy ZrO(OH)₂ gel is formed moments later. An ultrafine ZrO₂ powder is obtained after the gel is dried and calcined; the powder is monoclinic. The average particle size is ∼12 nm, and its specific surface area is 55.1 m²/g. In addition, partially stabilized ZrO₂ can be prepared in the same manner, yielding a good result.     

Determination of Solvent Contamination and Characterization of Ultrafine HNS Particles after Solvent Recrystallization

Solvent–antisolvent recrystallization employed for size reduction of HNS has been described and the effect of various parameters such as stirring rate, effect of antisolvent type, antisolvent temperature, ultrasonication, etc. was investigated. Purified HNS, produced by hot solvent recrystallization of production grade crude HNS, of mean particle size ∼95 μm was used for preparation of ultrafine particles of HNS. Solvent contamination in terms of residual solvent was determined by ¹H NMR and GC‐MS analysis. In addition, ultrafine HNS has been characterized for purity (HPLC, ¹H NMR), particle size and shape (PSA and SEM), specific surface area (BET analysis), thermal behavior (TGA, DSC), sensitivity (impact, friction), etc. The results have been compared with C‐HNS. UF‐HNS was >99% pure with mean particle size <1 μm. SEM showed submicrometer size rods like particles of HNS as the final material.     

Real-Time Characterization of the Composition of Individual Particles Emitted From Ultrafine Particle Concentrators

Particle concentrators are commonly used for controlling exposure levels to ambient ultrafine, fine, and coarse aerosols over a broad range of concentrations. For ultrafine aerosols, these concentrators require water condensation technology to grow and enrich these smaller sized particles (D _a < 100 nm). Because the chemistry of the particles is directly related to their toxicity, any changes induced by ultrafine concentrators on ambient particles need to be better characterized in order to fully understand the results obtained in health exposure studies. Using aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ATOFMS), the size-resolved chemistry was measured of concentrated ultrafine and accumulation mode (50–300 nm) particles from several particle concentrators with different designs. This is the first report detailing the size-resolved distributions of elemental carbon (EC) and organic carbon (OC) particles sampled from concentrators. Experimental measurements of the single particle mixing state of particles in concentrated versus non-concentrated ambient air show transformations of ultrafine EC particles occur as they become coated with organic carbon (OC) species during the concentration process. Based on relative ion intensities, concentrated ultrafine particles showed a 30% increase in the amount of OC on the EC particles for the same aerodynamic size. An increase in the number fraction of aromatic- and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-containing particles was also observed in both the ultrafine and fine size modes. The most likely explanation for such changes is gas-to-particle partitioning of organic components (e.g., water-soluble organic compounds) from the high volume of air used in the concentrator into aqueous phase ultrafine and fine aqueous particles created during the particle enrichment process.