Spring Evaluation and Calibration of Low-Cost Aerosol Sensors
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Date
2023-05-03
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Authors
Joseph, Neha
Mathew, Joanna S
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Publisher
East Carolina University
Abstract
The increase of environmental aerosols greatly impacts the severity of respiratory illnesses as a high concentration of aerosols can exacerbate symptoms. Therefore, it is important that individuals with respiratory illnesses, like asthma, can monitor air quality and make informed decisions about their health to effectively evaluate their risk. However, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-regulated air quality monitors are scarce due to the high operation and maintenance costs. Currently, there is only one EPA-regulated air quality monitoring site in Pitt County. One site cannot effectively be used as a standardized measure of air quality for a whole county because the site averages air quality and introduces exposure misclassification. Expanding the EPA’s air quality monitoring is not possible due to the cost associated with each site. Our research aims to determine the accuracy and precision of a low-cost aerosol instruments (PMSA003, OPC-N3, BlueSky, AirBeam3, and Clarity) by comparing their data to a real-time high-cost filter-corrected aerosol sensor (ADR-1500). In addition, a linear regression model will be derived for each of the low cost instruments compared to the ADR-1500 filter-corrected data. Any of the low cost instruments, if proven reliable after calibration, would be an economically friendlier option for aerosol monitoring. Filter measurements from the ADR-1500 will be used to quantify the discrete aerosol concentrations using a microbalance. The filters will be replaced every 24 hours and pre/post weighed. Strict humidity and temperature acclimation measures will be used during the post-weighing process to ensure that the measured weight difference on the filter indicates only aerosol content. The deployment site is at the intersection of Greenville Blvd and Charles Blvd in Greenville, NC. This research and data are important to those living with respiratory illnesses and will help affected populations make informed decisions about their health in their microenvironments. A network of low-cost aerosol sensors can also help the EPA get a better picture of the true air quality across North Carolina and potentially create new air quality standards and regulations to improve air quality measurements in underrepresented areas.