scholarly journals Results and recommendations from an intercomparison of six Hygroscopicity-TDMA systems

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 637-674
Author(s):  
A. Massling ◽  
N. Niedermaier ◽  
T. Hennig ◽  
E. Fors ◽  
E. Swietlicki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ammonium Sulfate ◽  
Particle Diameter ◽  
Control Unit ◽  
Data Evaluation ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
Hygroscopic Growth ◽  
Atmospheric Measurements ◽  
Individual System ◽  
Correct Determination

Abstract. The performance of six custom-built Hygrocopicity-Tandem Differential Mobility Analyzers (H-TDMA) systems was investigated in the frame of an international calibration and intercomparison workshop held in Leipzig, February 2006. The goal of the workshop was to harmonize H-TDMA measurements and develop recommendations for atmospheric measurements and their data evaluation. The H-TDMA systems were compared in terms of the sizing of dry particles, relative humidity (RH) uncertainty and consistency in determination of number fractions of different hygroscopic particle groups. The experiments were performed in an air-conditioned laboratory using ammonium sulfate particles or an external mixture of ammonium sulfate and soot particles. The sizing of dry particles of the six H-TDMA systems was within 0.2 to 4.2% of the selected particle diameter depending on investigated size and individual system. With regard to RH uncertainties, the H-TDMA systems showed deviations up to 4.5% RH from the set point at RH=90% investigating the hygroscopic growth of ammonium sulfate particles and comparing the results with theory. The evaluation of number fractions investigating an externally mixed aerosol delivered differences up to +/−8% in calculated number fraction for one and the same aerosol type. We analysed the datasets of the different H-TDMAs with one fitting routine to investigate differences caused by the different data evaluation procedures. The results showed that the differences were reduced from +12/−13% to +8/−6%. We can conclude here that a common data evaluation procedure to determine the number fraction of externally mixed aerosols will improve the comparability of H-TDMA measurements. We finally recommend, to ensure a good calibration of all flow, temperature and RH sensors in the systems. It is most important to thermally insulate the RH control unit and the second DMA and to monitor those temperatures as accurately as 0.2 °C. For a correct determination of external mixtures, it is necessary to take into account size-dependent losses due to the diffusion in the pluming between the DMAs and in the aerosol humidification unit.

scholarly journals Results and recommendations from an intercomparison of six Hygroscopicity-TDMA systems

2011 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 485-497 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Massling ◽  
N. Niedermeier ◽  
T. Hennig ◽  
E. O. Fors ◽  
E. Swietlicki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ammonium Sulphate ◽  
Particle Diameter ◽  
Data Evaluation ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
Atmospheric Measurements ◽  
Size Dependent ◽  
Evaluation Procedures ◽  
Individual System ◽  
Correct Determination

Abstract. The performance of six custom-built Hygrocopicity-Tandem Differential Mobility Analyser (H-TDMA) systems was investigated in the frame of an international calibration and intercomparison workshop held in Leipzig, February 2006. The goal of the workshop was to harmonise H-TDMA measurements and develop recommendations for atmospheric measurements and their data evaluation. The H-TDMA systems were compared in terms of the sizing of dry particles, relative humidity (RH) uncertainty, and consistency in determination of number fractions of different hygroscopic particle groups. The experiments were performed in an air-conditioned laboratory using ammonium sulphate particles or an external mixture of ammonium sulphate and soot particles. The sizing of dry particles of the six H-TDMA systems was within 0.2 to 4.2% of the selected particle diameter depending on investigated size and individual system. Measurements of ammonium sulphate aerosol found deviations equivalent to 4.5% RH from the set point of 90% RH compared to results from previous experiments in the literature. Evaluation of the number fraction of particles within the clearly separated growth factor modes of a laboratory generated externally mixed aerosol was done. The data from the H-TDMAs was analysed with a single fitting routine to investigate differences caused by the different data evaluation procedures used for each H-TDMA. The differences between the H-TDMAs were reduced from +12/−13% to +8/−6% when the same analysis routine was applied. We conclude that a common data evaluation procedure to determine number fractions of externally mixed aerosols will improve the comparability of H-TDMA measurements. It is recommended to ensure proper calibration of all flow, temperature and RH sensors in the systems. It is most important to thermally insulate the aerosol humidification unit and the second DMA and to monitor these temperatures to an accuracy of 0.2 °C. For the correct determination of external mixtures, it is necessary to take into account size-dependent losses due to diffusion in the plumbing between the DMAs and in the aerosol humidification unit.

scholarly journals A humidity-controlled fast integrated mobility spectrometer (HFIMS) for rapid measurements of particle hygroscopic growth

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 4915-4925 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamara Pinterich ◽  
Steven R. Spielman ◽  
Yang Wang ◽  
Susanne V. Hering ◽  
Jian Wang
Keyword(s):  
Growth Factor ◽  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Particle Diameter ◽  
Control Unit ◽  
Particle Growth ◽  
Hygroscopic Growth ◽  
Ambient Aerosols ◽  
In Series ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Factor Measurement

Abstract. We present a humidity-controlled fast integrated mobility spectrometer (HFIMS) for rapid particle hygroscopicity measurements. The HFIMS consists of a differential mobility analyzer (DMA), a relative humidity (RH) control unit and a water-based FIMS (WFIMS) coupled in series. The WFIMS (Pinterich et al., 2017) combines the fast integrated mobility spectrometer (Kulkarni and Wang, 2006a, b) with laminar flow water condensation methodologies (Hering and Stolzenburg, 2005; Spielman et al., 2017). Inside the WFIMS, particles of different electrical mobilities are spatially separated in an electric field, condensationally enlarged and imaged to provide 1 Hz measurements of size distribution spanning a factor of  ∼ 3 in particle diameter, which is sufficient to cover the entire range of growth factor (GF) for atmospheric aerosol particles at 90 % RH. By replacing the second DMA of a traditional hygroscopicity tandem DMA (HTDMA) system with the WFIMS, the HFIMS greatly increases the speed of particle growth factor measurement. The performance of the HFIMS was evaluated using NaCl particles with well-known hygroscopic growth behavior and further through measurements of ambient aerosols. Results show that the HFIMS can reproduce, within 2 %, the literature values for hygroscopic growth of NaCl particles. NaCl deliquescence was observed between 76 and 77 % RH in agreement with the theoretical value of 76.5 % (Ming and Russell, 2001), and efflorescence relative humidity (43 %) was found to lie within the RH range of 41 to 56 % reported in the literature. Ambient data indicate that the HFIMS can measure the hygroscopic growth of five standard dry particle sizes ranging from 35 to 165 nm within less than 3 min, which makes it about 1 order of magnitude faster than traditional HTDMA systems.

scholarly journals A Humidity-controlled Fast Integrated Mobility Spectrometer (HFIMS) for rapid measurements of particle hygroscopic growth

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamara Pinterich ◽  
Steven R. Spielman ◽  
Susanne Hering ◽  
Jian Wang
Keyword(s):  
Growth Factor ◽  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Particle Diameter ◽  
Control Unit ◽  
Particle Growth ◽  
Hygroscopic Growth ◽  
Ambient Aerosols ◽  
In Series ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Factor Measurement

Abstract. We present a Humidity-controlled Fast Integrated Mobility Spectrometer (HFIMS) for rapid particle hygroscopicity measurements. The HFIMS consists of a differential mobility analyzer (DMA), a relative humidity (RH) control unit and a water-based FIMS (WFIMS) coupled in series. The WFIMS (Pinterich et al., 2017) combines the Fast Integrated Mobility Spectrometer (Kulkarni and Wang, 2006a, b) with laminar flow water condensation methodologies (Hering and Stolzenburg, 2005; Spielman et al., 2017). Inside the WFIMS, particles of different electrical mobilities are spatially separated in an electric field, condensationally enlarged and imaged to provide 1-Hz measurements of size distribution spanning a factor of ~ 3 in particle diameter, sufficient to cover the entire range of growth factor for atmospheric aerosol particles at 90 % RH. By replacing the second DMA of a traditional hygroscopicity tandem DMA (HTDMA) system with the WFIMS, the HFIMS greatly increases the speed of particle growth factor measurement. The performance of the HFIMS was evaluated using NaCl particles with well-known hygroscopic growth behavior, and further through measurements of ambient aerosols. Results show that HFIMS can reproduce, within 2 % the literature values for hygroscopic growth of NaCl particles. NaCl deliquescence was observed between 76 % and 77 % RH in agreement with the theoretical value of 76.5 % (Ming and Russell, 2001), and efflorescence relative humidity (43 %) was found to lie within the RH range of 41 % to 56 % reported in the literature. Ambient data indicate that HFIMS can measure the hygroscopic growth of five standard dry particle sizes ranging from 35 to 165 nm within less than three minutes, which makes it about an order of magnitude faster than traditional HTDMA systems.

scholarly journals Manufacturing PLA/PCL Blends by Ultrasonic Molding Technology

Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 2412
Author(s):  
Inés Ferrer ◽  
Ariadna Manresa ◽  
José Alberto Méndez ◽  
Marc Delgado-Aguilar ◽  
Maria Luisa Garcia-Romeu
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Weight ◽  
Crystallization Rate ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Small Particle Size ◽  
Polymer Mixtures ◽  
Crystallinity Degree ◽  
Correct Determination ◽  
Production Stages ◽  
Process Speed

Ultrasonic molding (USM) is a good candidate for studying the plasticization of polymer mixtures or other composite materials due to either the little amount of material needed for processing, low waste or the needed low pressure and residence time of the mold. Thus, the novelty of this research is the capability of USM technology to process PLA/PCL blends and their corresponding neat materials, encompassing all the production stages, from raw material to the final specimen. The major findings of the work revealed that the thermal properties of the blends were not affected by the USM process, although the crystallinity degree experienced variations, decreasing for PLA and increasing for PCL, which was attributed to the crystallization rate of each polymer, the high process speed, the short cooling time and the small particle size. The employed ultrasonic energy increased the molecular weight with low variations through the specimen. However, the degradation results aligned with the expected trend of these material blends. Moreover, this study also showed the effect pellet shape and dimensions have over the process parameters, as well as the effect of the blend composition. It can be concluded that USM is a technology suitable to successfully process PLA/PCL blends with the correct determination of process parameter windows.

Evaluation of methods for detection of β-lactamase production in MSSA

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Skov ◽  
David R Lonsway ◽  
Jesper Larsen ◽  
Anders Rhod Larsen ◽  
Jurgita Samulioniené ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Susceptibility Testing ◽  
Confirmatory Test ◽  
Disc Diffusion ◽  
Broth Microdilution ◽  
Confirmatory Tests ◽  
Correct Determination ◽  
Primary Test ◽  
Zone Edge ◽  
Evaluation Of Methods

Abstract Objectives Correct determination of penicillin susceptibility is pivotal for using penicillin in the treatment of Staphylococcus aureus infections. This study examines the performance of MIC determination, disc diffusion and a range of confirmatory tests for detection of penicillin susceptibility in S. aureus. Methods A total of 286 consecutive penicillin-susceptible S. aureus blood culture isolates as well as a challenge set of 62 MSSA isolates were investigated for the presence of the blaZ gene by PCR and subjected to penicillin-susceptibility testing using broth microdilution MIC determination, disc diffusion including reading of the zone edge, two nitrocefin tests and the cloverleaf test. Results Using PCR-based detection of blaZ as the gold standard, both broth microdilution MIC testing and disc diffusion testing resulted in a relatively low accuracy (82%–93%) with a sensitivity ranging from 49%–93%. Among the confirmatory tests, the cloverleaf test performed with 100% accuracy, while zone edge interpretation and nitrocefin-based tests increased the sensitivity of β-lactamase detection to 96%–98% and 82%–96% when using MIC determination or disc diffusion as primary test, respectively. Conclusions This investigation showed that reliable and accurate detection of β-lactamase production in S. aureus can be obtained by MIC determination or penicillin disc diffusion followed by interpretation of the zone edge as a confirmatory test for apparently penicillin-susceptible isolates. The more cumbersome cloverleaf test can also be used. Nitrocefin-based tests should not be used as the only test for confirmation of a presumptive β-lactamase-negative isolate.

IMPROVEMENT OF THE CAMERAL CHECKS PROCESS IN RUSSIA BASED ON FOREIGN EXPERIENCE

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Darya Sergeevna Kareva ◽  
◽  
Sevinj Mahmud kyzy Ismailova ◽  
Elena Evgenievna Dozhdva ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Foreign Experience ◽  
Correct Determination

The article substantiates the need to reform cameral tax control in Russia based on the experience of the United States. The necessity of introducing into the procedure of cameral control the mechanism of requesting all documents confirming the correct determination of tax obligations is determined. The aim of improving the process of desk audits of control is that the new procedure for conducting audits will reduce the likelihood of tax violations.

scholarly journals Automation of flow injection gas diffusion-ion chromatography for the nanomolar determination of methylamines and ammonia in seawater and atmospheric samples

1995 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 205-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart W. Gibb ◽  
John W. Wood ◽  
R. Fauzi ◽  
C. Mantoura
Keyword(s):  
Ion Chromatography ◽  
Flow Injection ◽  
Aqueous Media ◽  
Control Unit ◽  
Gas Diffusion ◽  
Aqueous Sample ◽  
In Series ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Improved Design

The automation and improved design and performance of Flow Injection Gas Diffusion-Ion Chromatography (FIGD-IC), a novel technique for the simultaneous analysis of trace ammonia (NH3) and methylamines (MAs) in aqueous media, is presented. Automated Flow Injection Gas Diffusion (FIGD) promotes the selective transmembrane diffusion of MAs and NH3from aqueous sample under strongly alkaline (pH > 12, NaOH), chelated (EDTA) conditions into a recycled acidic acceptor stream. The acceptor is then injected onto an ion chromatograph where NH3and the MAs are fully resolved as their cations and detected conductimetrically. A versatile PC interfaced control unit and data capture unit (DCU) are employed in series to direct the selonoid valve switching sequence, IC operation and collection of data. Automation, together with other modifications improved both linearily (R2> 0.99 MAs 0-100 nM, NH30-1000 nM) and precision (<8%) of FIGD-IC at nanomolar concentrations, compared with the manual procedure. The system was successfully applied to the determination of MAs and NH3in seawater and in trapped particulate and gaseous atmospheric samples during an oceanographic research cruise.

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