A LABORATORY EVALUATION OF A NITROGEN-DIOXIDE PERSONAL SAMPLING DEVICE

A series of chamber experiments was carried out to determine performance characteristics of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) personal sampling devices (PSDs) under varying climatic conditions. The impact of extreme temperature on NO2 PSDs was evaluated on two performance modes: (1) PSDs as stationary sampling devices; and (2) PSDs as exposure measuring devices. Extremely low temperatures affect both the accuracy and precision of the PSD measurements. Under conventional mobility patterns, the extreme temperature impact does not affect the ability of PSDs to measure personal exposures to NO2 accurately. NO2 PSD is a simple, robust, lightweight, unobtrusive, and easy-to-use sampler that measures exposure to NO2 with sensitivity and time resolution not previously available with other diffusion monitors. © 1990.