Use of passive ambient ozone (O3) samplers in vegetation effects assessment

A stochastistic, Weibull probability model was developed and verified to simulate the underlying frequency distributions of hourly ozone (O-3) concentrations (exposure dynamics) using the single, weekly mean values obtained from a passive (sodium nitrite absorbent) sampler. The simulation was based on the data derived from a co-located continuous monitor. Although at the moment the model output may be considered as being specific to the elevation and location of the study site, the results were extremely good. This effort for the approximation of the O-3 exposure dynamics can be extended to other sites with similar data sets and in developing a generalized understanding of the stochastic O-3 exposure-plant response relationships, conferring measurable benefits to the future use of passive O-3 samplers, in the absence of continuous monitoring. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.