The MARGA-R is a state-of-the-art fully autonomous sampling and measurement system that continuously measures the water-soluble gas and aerosol components that have a direct effect on air quality. These results can then be used to study the formation of aerosols from their precursor gases and how their concentration and composition vary with diurnal and seasonal cycles.

The instrument uses ion chromatography to monitor air quality by measuring the concentration of water-soluble gases and aerosols in air (two cut sizes for aerosol). An air pump in combination with a critical orifice draws ambient air with an airflow of 1 m3/hour into the wet part cabinet via a size selective inlet (PM2.5 or PM1 or both simultaneously). The gases and the particulate matter part move separately inside the wet cabinet before finally being fed into the Ion Chromatograph for analysis.

The gases measured are: Hydrochloric Acid (HCl), Nitric acid (HNO3), Nitrous acid (HONO), Sulfur dioxide (SO2), Ammonia (NH3) and the aerosol ions measured are Aerosol ions measured: Chloride (Cl), Nitrate (NO3-), Sulfate (SO42-), Ammonium (NH4+), Potassium (K+), Calcium (Ca2+), Magnesium (Mg2+).

Main Features:

Instrument Made : METROHM 2060 MARGA-R.

1. Data collection with a time resolution of 90 mins to study e.g., diurnal variation or trajectory models for pollution events.

2. Remote control or touch screen to easily access results, trend graphs, and more.

3. The IC can be used as a standalone lab instrument for other projects when not in use for 24/7 air quality monitoring.

4. A dual-channel ion chromatograph (IC) quantifies anions and cations in aerosols and water-soluble gases simultaneously with high accuracies to reach detection limits as low as 0.001 µg/m3.

Applications:

1. Atmospheric chemistry and new particle formation.

2. Source apportionment studies.

3. Health risk assessment studies.