Partic. vol. 6 no. 3 pp. 218-222 (June 2008)
doi: 10.1016/j.partic.2008.01.005

Research Note

Difference between low-volume and high-volume Andersen samplers in measuring atmospheric aerosols

Fengfu Fu^{a, b, *}, Nobuo Shinohaya^b, Mitsuo Ito^b, Xueqin Xu^a, Mincong Shen^a, Liangjun Xu^a

fengfu@fzu.edu.cn

Abstract

The mass concentration and size distribution of aerosols in Tokaimura were investigated using a high-volume and a low-volume Andersen sampler. A difference was found using the two samplers: the concentration of total aerosols determined with the high-volume sampler is smaller than that of the low-volume sampler by 70–90% throughout the year. Compared to the high-volume sampler, low-volume sampler gave lower concentration for aerosols >7 μm, higher concentration for aerosols of 3.3–7.0 μm and <1.1 μm, though similar results for aerosols of 1.1–3.3 μm. The low-volume sampler was found to have better separation efficiency and higher accuracy.

Keywords

Aerosols; Cascade impactor; Andersen air sampler; Atmospheric particles