Abstract
The sodium arsenite method developed by Jacobs andHochheiser is one of the most widely used manualmethods for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) monitoring inambient air, particularly in developing countries. Asreported, the method gives 82% NO2 absorptionefficiency (NAE) in the concentration range from 40 to750 μg/m3, when only one impinger tube isemployed in the sampling train at a flow rate of 0.2lpm and for 24 h sampling duration. Accordingly,a uniform correction factor (0.82) is used indenominator to calculate the ultimate concentration ofNO2 in ambient air.In the present investigation, the effect oftemperature on absorption efficiency of NO2 isstudied employing four impinger tubes in series tocollect the maximum NO2 generated in the gasstream. The study conducted at 16, 26 and 36 °Ctemperatures shows maximum absorption efficiency(average) of 87.8% at 26°C in 1st impingertube. At lower and higher temperatures, it is foundconsiderably less. A suitable correction factor,therefore, must be applied to estimate actual NO2concentration in ambient air using arsenite method, intropical countries like India, where atmospherictemperature variations are large (less than 5°Cin winter and more than 45°C in summer).
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Blacker, J. H. and Brief, R. S.: 1972, Evaluation of the Jacobs-Hochheiser method for determining ambient nitrogen oxide, Chemosphere 1, 43.
Federal Register: 1971, 36:8186, April 30.
Goyal, S. K.: 1998, Measurement of NO2 in ambient air: effect of bubbler type and sample flow rate in sodium arsenite method, Indian J. Environmental Protection (in press).
Harrison, Roy H. and Perry, Roger: 1986, Handbook of Air Pollution Analysis, 2nd ed. Champman and Hall Publication.
Husser, T. R. and Shy, C. M.: 1972, Environ. Sci. Technol. 6, 890.
Jacobs, M. B. and Hochheiser, S.: 1958, Continuous sampling and ultramicro-determination of nitrogen dioxide in air, Analytical Chemistry 30, 426.
Pandit, V. I. and Aggarwal, A. L.: 1992, Field studies for comparison of 2 NO2 monitoring techniques, Indian J. Environmental Protection 12, 9, 667–670.
Margeson, J. H., Beard, M. E. and Suggs, J. C.: 1977, Evaluation of sodium arsenite method for measurement of NO2 in ambient air, J. of the Air Pollution Control Association 27, 6, 553–556.
Stern, A. C.: 1977, Air Pollution: Vol II. The Effects of Air Pollution. 3rd edition, Academic Press, New York.
Stern, A. C.: 1976, Air Pollution: Vol III. Measuring, Monitoring and Surveillance of Air Pollution. 3rd edition, Academic Press, New York.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Goyal, S.K., Gavane, A.G. & Aggarwal, A.L. Effect of Temperature on Absorption Efficiency of NO2 in Arsenite Method. Environ Monit Assess 61, 285–291 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006131525148
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006131525148