News & Events

When

Date - January 13, 2023
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

What

Technical Director
TRC Environmental
Raleigh, North Carolina

Talk Title: “The Spectroscopy of Smokestacks: Chemistry and the Measurement of Air Pollutants form Industrial Sources”

Abstract:

Industries such as power plants, paper mills, and steel and cement plants are significant sources of air
pollution from particulate and chemical compounds. Collecting samples for analysis is challenging,
usually requiring climbing to sampling platforms far above ground, and the analysis itself requires
measurement of very low (parts per million or per billion) concentrations in complex chemical matrices.
Because the compounds emitted differ depending on the type of industry, EPA has regulated 188
compounds as “Hazardous Air Pollutant” or HAPS because of their impact on human health. An array of
sampling and analytical techniques is required to measure the HAPS because the species range from
volatile organics and inorganics to metals and other semi- or non-volatile compounds. One technique
capable of measuring a large number of HAPS is FTIR, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy. The
presentation shows how pollutants are measured at ppm or ppb levels in real time, the quality
assurance procedures that ensure accuracy, and the challenges of analyzing IR spectra of complex
gaseous mixtures.