16
Air Monitoring
are the main contributor to PM10 in western and central Europe whereas for southern Europe biogenic emissions, resuspended dust from local sources and also Saharan dust events contribute. Directive 2008/50/EC recognises that legislation will not control emissions from natural sources (wind-blown desert dust; sea spray aerosols; PM emitted by volcanoes, seismic activities and wild fires) and allows Member States to subtract the contribution of such sources before comparing ambient concentrations with the legally binding limit values. In 2008 ten Member States (Austria, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain, UK) reported exceedances of the 24 hour PM10 limit value due to natural contributions. The major source quoted was 'transport of natural particles from dry regions outside the Member State'.
However EU limit and target values, as well as the WHO guidelines, for PM are widely exceeded across Europe. In 2009 20% of the EU urban population lived in areas where the EU air quality 24-hour limit value for PM10 was exceeded. If one considers the WHO guidelines then this figure rises to 80-90%. It has been estimated that by exceeding WHO guidelines for PM in 25 European cities that the total health costs of treating the inhabitants are in the region of €31.5 billion a year. Despite emission reductions over the past 15 years there is no discernible downward trend in the percentage of the EU urban population exposed to PM10 concentrations in excess of the EU air quality daily limit value.
The European Commission started infringement proceedings against a number of Member States for failing to comply with the EU's air quality standard. Some Member States requested time extensions to meet the PM10 standard. For example the UK was granted a temporary and conditional exemption until 11 June 2011 for the Greater London Urban Area. As a result a number of short term measures (re-routing buses, spraying roads) have been introduced at 'hot spots' in London to reduce PM10 levels. The UK government has until the end of September 2012 to provide the European Commission with data about breaches of particulate limits in 2011.
The requirement to measure aerosols in range of fields has increased dramatically over the last two decades. As a result there are now a large number of instruments on the market ranging from small portable devices for personnel exposure monitoring to research laboratory based instrumentation. Selection of the instrument depends upon the aims of your research i.e. determining compliance with standards, quantifying trends, identifying hotspots. In other words you must decide on (i) what you want to measure (which metric – number, mass, volume; and size distribution or concentration), (ii) is measurement response time critical; (iii) how long will you sample for and (iv) do you need to collect a sample. Generally particulate sampling devices are divided into two types: collection of a sample on a substrate and in-situ real time measurements. The latter can be subdivided into extractive and external sensing techniques. Extractive methods require the aerosol to be brought into the instrument (e.g. optical particle counters) while non-invasive methods are utilised with external sensing.
Aerosol particle sizes range from 0.001 µm to 100 µm and one cannot obtain particle size information with a single instrument. For example inertial techniques don’t work well below 0.5 µm at ambient temperature and pressure while optical methods utilising visible wavelengths cannot sense particles smaller than the wavelength.
Table 2: EU exposure assessment targets for particulate matter Title
PM2.5 Exposure concentration obligation PM2.5 Exposure reduction target Metric
20 µg/m3 (AEI)
Percentage reduction*
+ all measures to reach 18 µg/m3 (AEI)
, all appropriate measures need to be taken to achieve 18 µg/m3 Based on 3 year average Averaging period Based on 3 year average Legal nature
Legally binding in 2015 (years 2013,2014,2015)
Reduction to be attained where possible in 2020, determined on the basis of the value of exposure indicator in 2010
* Depending on the value of AEI in 2010, a percentage reduction requirement (0, 10, 15, or 20%) is set in the Directive. If AEI in 2010 is assessed to be over 22 µg/m3
by 2020. Adapted from
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/air/quality/standards.htm
Particulate matter (PM10), 2009. Daily limit value for the protection of human health Source
http://www.eea.europa.eu/legal/copyright. Copyright holder: European Environment Agency.
A basic knowledge of aerosol science is essential to decide which aerosol properties to measure and how to interpret the results. There are now national aerosol societies in various countries with many running tutorials or short courses on the basics of aerosol science. For example in the UK the Aerosol Society is running a one day meeting in October covering the fundamentals. The course is specifically aimed at those new to the subject.
Please note that
EEA standard re-use policy: unless otherwise indicated, re-use of content on the EEA website for commercial or non-commercial purposes is permitted free of charge, provided that the source is acknowledged (
http://www.eea.europa.eu/legal/copyright). Copyright holder: European Envi- ronment Agency.
TCP/IP Remote Control of Analysers with Dynamic, Multilingual Interface
Environnement S.A’s (France) analysers are now integrating an embedded web server featuring intuitive navigation by pictograms and offering quick and easy access to the analyser, without the need for special software.
Secured, modern, simple, fast and accessible from any type of browser, the es@cloud interface allows the display, configuration, maintenance, diagnostics or software updating of Environnement S.A measurement systems or analysers, remotely, from any PC, tablet or SmartPhone.
From customising menus with shortcut key functions, "favourite" themes and animated diagrams, everything has been designed for a quick familiarisation and a comfortable use of the analysers: just plug and play!
Reader Reply Card No. Reader Reply Card No. IET September / October 2012 43
www.envirotech-online.com 44
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