Data set associated with “A low-cost monitor for simultaneous measurement of fine particulate matter and aerosol optical depth – Part 3: Automation and design improvements”
Date
2021
Authors
Wendt, Eric A.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract
Atmospheric particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) impacts public
health, the environment, and the climate. Consequently, a need exists for accurate, distributed
measurements of surface-level PM2.5 concentrations at a global scale. Remote sensing
observations of aerosol optical depth (AOD) have been used to estimate surface-level PM2.5 for
studies on human health and the Earth system. However, these estimates are uncertain due to a
lack of measurements available to validate the derived PM2.5 products, which rely on the ratio
of surface PM2.5 to AOD. Traditional monitoring of these two air quality metrics is costly and
cumbersome, leading to a lack of surface monitoring networks with high spatial density. In part 1
of this series we described the development and validation of a first-generation device for
low-cost measurement of AOD and PM2.5: The Aerosol Mass and Optical Depth (AMODv1)
sampler. Part 2 of the series describes a citizen-science field deployment of the AMODv1 device.
Here in part 3, we present an autonomous version of the AMOD, known as AMODv2, capable of
unsupervised measurement of AOD and PM2.5 at 20-minute time intervals. The AMOD includes
a set of four optically filtered photodiodes for multi-wavelength (current version at 440, 500,
675, and 870 nm) AOD, a Plantower PMS5003 sensor for time-resolved optical PM2.5
measurements, and a pump and cyclone system for time-integrated gravimetric filter
measurements of particle mass and composition. The AMODv2 uses low-cost motors and sensor
data for autonomous sun alignment to provide the semi-continuous AOD measurements.
Operators can connect to the AMODv2 over Bluetooth® and configure a sample using a
smartphone application. A Wi-Fi module enables real-time data streaming and visualization on
our website (csu-ceams.com). We present a sample deployment of 10 AMODv2s during a
wildfire smoke event and demonstrate the ability of the instrument to capture changes in air
quality at sub-hourly time resolution. We also present the results of an AOD validation campaign
where AMODv2s were co-located with AERONET (Aerosol Robotics Network) instruments as
the reference method at AOD levels ranging from 0.016-1.59. We observed close agreement
between AMODv2s and the reference instrument with mean absolute errors of 0.046, 0.057,
0.026, and 0.033 AOD units at 440 nm, 500 nm, 675 nm, and 870 nm, respectively. We
identified individual unit bias as the primary source of error between AMODv2s and reference
units and propose re-calibration to mitigate these biases. The AMODv2 is well suited for
citizen-science and other high-spatial-density deployments due to its low cost, compact form,
user-friendly interface, and high measurement frequency of AOD and PM2.5. These
deployments could provide a rich air pollution data set for evaluating remote sensing
observations, atmospheric modeling simulations, and provide communities with the information
they need to implement effective public health and environmental interventions.
Description
This dataset includes two csv files containing the data associated with testing and validation of the AMODv2 particulate matter sampler. The first file, "amod_v2_test_deployment.csv" contains the results from a test deployment of 10 AMODv2 units in October 2020. The second file, "amod_v2_validation.csv" contains results from a validation experiment performed relative to a reference monitor perform fall 2020.
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences
Department of Atmospheric Science
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences
Department of Atmospheric Science
Rights Access
Subject
particulate matter
aerosol optical depth
air pollution
Citation
Associated Publications
Wendt, E. A., Quinn, C., L'Orange, C., Miller-Lionberg, D. D., Ford, B., Pierce, J. R., Mehaffy, J., Cheeseman, M., Jathar, S. H., Hagan, D. H., Rosen, Z., Long, M., and Volckens, J.: A low-cost monitor for simultaneous measurement of fine particulate matter and aerosol optical depth – Part 3: Automation and design improvements, Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6023–6038, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6023-2021, 2021.