Number Concentration of Aerosols in Polluted Urban Areas Using an Expansion Counter

Ultrafine particles are of great importance regarding adverse health effects in urban air pollution. Regulation of particulate matter may be changed from the mass-based to the number-based methods. For measurement of number concentration measurement, we have designed, constructed and used an Expansion Condensation Particle Counter (ECPC). In this counter the nanometer sized particles are pumped in and humidified to grow to the sizes that can be detected by optical means. The ECPC measures the number concentration by measuring the laser scattered light from grown particles. It has a cut-off diameter below 3 nm. The number concentration of aerosols is measured at various sites with different levels of pollution in Mainz, Germany and Isfahan, Iran. The number concentration measurements can be related to the meteorological parameters and the pollution gases.

Keywords:

Aerosol , Counter , Number Concentration ,