Passive Air Sampling
There is a rapidly growing interest in passive air sampling systems for quantifying ambient concentrations of gaseous air pollutants. Passive air samplers are inexpensive, easy to use and do not require electricity to operate. Therefore, they are very attractive for use in remote and wilderness areas and in regional scale air quality assessments. Passive samplers allow the quantification of cumulative air pollutant exposures, as total or average pollutant concentrations over a sampling duration (few hours, days and weeks).
The Maxxam All-Season Passive Air Sampling System uses a specially designed rain shelter to allow the passive sampler to be installed face downwards and to allow air movement across the surface of the diffusion barrier. After exposure, the samplers are analyzed in a laboratory. The sampling rates of the passive samplers are calculated using an equation, which takes into account its dependence on associated meteorological factors.
Currently Maxxam Analytics offers passive air samplers for the following parameters: SO2, H2S, NO2, O3, NOx, NH3, VOCs (over 25 compounds) and BTEX.
Typical industries and applications of Maxxam’s Passive Air Sampling System include, but are not limited to:
- Petroleum and Petrochemical Facilities
- Chemical, Fertilizer and Mining Operations
- Pulp & Paper and Electric Generation Plants
- Environmental & Engineering Consultants
- Government Agencies, Research Study Groups
- Replacement of “Static” monitoring stations
- Airshed and Fenceline Monitoring Programs
- Compliance, Nuisance & Baseline Monitoring
- Environmental Impact Assessments
- Agriculture
