Using AROMA-VOC to Monitor Air Toxics in the Aftermath of Hurricane Florence
Comments Off on Using AROMA-VOC to Monitor Air Toxics in the Aftermath of Hurricane FlorenceA large area survey undertaken in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence was published this week in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. This work was a collaboration between Entanglement Technologies, Texas A&M University and North Carolina State University. AROMA-VOC was used to monitor air toxics in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Florence in North Carolina. An AROMA-VOC measured benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene(s) (BTEX) along eastern North Carolina roadways during three sampling campaigns (0-8 months post-hurricane; 2018 September, 2019 January, and 2019 May) to study the spatial and temporal impacts of the hurricane on air toxics. The work found that benzene and PM2.5 routinely exceeded ambient air criteria and that these pollutants may be affected by flood-related disasters.
Read more in the journal here.
Learn more about our AROMA-VOC chemical vapor analyzer here.
Citation: Bhandari, S.; Casillas, G.; Aly, N.A.; Zhu, R.; Newman, G.; Wright, F.A.; Miller, A.; Adler, G.; Rusyn, I.; Chiu, W.A. Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Impacts of Hurricane Florence on Criteria Air Pollutants and Air Toxics in Eastern North Carolina. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 1757. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031757
Partner with Entanglement for New EPA Grants for Community Air Pollution Monitoring
Comments Off on Partner with Entanglement for New EPA Grants for Community Air Pollution MonitoringThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced a competitive grant opportunity to increase air quality monitoring capabilities in underserved communities and to promote partnerships between government and community organizations. This funding opportunity, called the Enhanced Air Quality Monitoring for Communities (RFA#: EPA-OAR-OAQPS-22-01), encourages state, local, and tribal governments as well as private and public non-profits and community groups to apply. The assistance program was created through the American Rescue Plan to reduce pollution in underserved communities and to support communities that need better information about air quality in their neighborhoods. Approximately 50-70 grants ranging in value from $25,000 to $100,000 (20-30 “small” grants) and $100,001 to $500,000 (30-40 “large” grants) will be awarded for a total of $20 Million available.
Entanglement Technologies is an ideal partner for this grant opportunity. Our AROMA analyzers are designed for community monitoring of air toxics, also called hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). AROMA analyzers provide real-time, lab-quality, field and mobile VOC measurements, allowing our partners to fill critical capability gaps in air quality monitoring applications without requiring an expert operator. Our ethylene oxide analyzer, AROMA-ETO, is uniquely capable of performing field analysis of ambient air single digit part-per-trillion concentrations, which is below the cancer risk level.
Partner with Entanglement to protect your community. Contact us at info@entanglementtech.com. The deadline to apply for this EPA grant is February 25th, 2022.
AROMA Featured in New Harris County Mobile Monitoring Unit
Comments Off on AROMA Featured in New Harris County Mobile Monitoring UnitHarris County Pollution Control Services in the Houston, Texas, area unveiled their new mobile monitoring unit called the rapid ambient air monitoring or RAAM. The RAAM is outfitted with Entanglement Technologies’ AROMA-TOX, a real-time chemical analyzer to provide critical in-field data on some of the most hazardous chemicals frequently used in the petrochemical industry. These chemicals include hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) such as benzene, hydrogen sulfide, 1,3-butadiene, and hydrogen cyanide. With this new mobile unit, Harris County Pollution Control Services will be able to respond to industrial leaks and accidents effectively and rapidly, further increasing its ability to protect the surrounding communities.
Learn more in this story about RAAM on Houston Public Radio.
Entanglement to Receive EPA SBIR Award to Enhance Ethylene Oxide Detection
Comments Off on Entanglement to Receive EPA SBIR Award to Enhance Ethylene Oxide DetectionNovember 4th, 2021 – Entanglement Technologies has been selected to receive a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to enhance analytical capabilities to measure ethylene oxide (EtO) with AROMA-ETO. A thermal desorption, cavity ring-down spectroscopy analyzer capable of delivering single part-per-trillion detection limits of EtO and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in near-real time, AROMA-ETO is currently the most sensitive analyzer on the market for in-field assessments of EtO in ambient air. Entanglement will use the EPA SBIR award to drive key innovations to accelerate the measurement timescales for EtO, which ensures optimal spatial and temporal resolution for mobile and stationary monitoring. The deployment of current and future generations of AROMA-ETO provides policy-makers, industrial operators, and communities with critical information to reduce EtO-related health risks.
UPDATE: AROMA-VOC On the Ground at Carlsbad Caverns
Comments Off on UPDATE: AROMA-VOC On the Ground at Carlsbad CavernsAROMA-VOC is currently on the ground studying emissions from the Permian Basin in western Texas and southeastern New Mexico. Researchers at Colorado State University in collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Park Service are seeking to better understand how volatile organic compounds (VOCs) lead to ozone nonattainment around Carlsbad Caverns, NM. At the Caverns, AROMA-VOC is taking measurements alongside other instrumentation. It will also be deployed in a vehicle to study emissions from the Permian Basin, as well as surrounding urban and remote (background) locations to better understand local sources. The flexibility of AROMA-VOC enables long-term, unattended fixed monitoring, as well as mobile measurements from any vehicle – no build-out required.
Contact us to learn more about how AROMA can meet your research and air quality monitoring needs.
UPDATE: AROMA-VOC in Collaboration Between the University of Houston and Baylor
Comments Off on UPDATE: AROMA-VOC in Collaboration Between the University of Houston and BaylorThe University of Houston and Baylor University are adding AROMA-VOC to their mobile monitoring capabilities in the summer of 2021. A team of researchers and their students, including Dr. James Flynn from University of Houston, as well as Dr. Rebecca Sheesley and Dr. Sascha Usenko from Baylor, has been studying the air quality in Houston and El Paso, Texas over the past couple of years. Of particular interest is how different sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) contribute to ozone levels in these regions. They are adding AROMA-VOC to mobile monitoring campaigns to identify and quantify sources of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene(s) (BTEX). AROMA-VOC is a flexible, real-time chemical analyzer with part-per-trillion detection limits of benzene and other VOCs.
Mobile, lab-quality hazardous air pollutant monitoring in Denver
Comments Off on Mobile, lab-quality hazardous air pollutant monitoring in DenverAROMA-VOC was recently in the Denver area, collecting mobile air quality data from a rental minivan. After the instrument was uninstalled from the Colorado Air Monitoring Mobile Laboratory (CAMML) on March 8th, Entanglement’s CEO Tony Miller and Senior Account Executive Aurelie Marcotte were able to re-install the tool and begin mobile monitoring operations within 30 minutes
AROMA-VOC collects speciated, lab-quality data on hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) in the field or in a vehicle, with part-per-trillion detection limits for most compounds. Using AROMA-VOC in RapidScan mode, the instrument took real-time measurements continuously during the drive, which included passes near an oil and gas well pad, landfill, wastewater treatment plant, and oil refinery.
AROMA-VOC data chemically identified the well pad through a distinct alkane spike, and found an increased methane signature near the landfill, with both findings consistent with wind direction. The refinery had an overall elevated alkane signature with significant increases near holding vessels and fill stations.
Running AROMA-VOC in RapidScan mode provides class compound identification down to ppb levels in seconds, facilitating real-time identification and characterization of areas of interest. These areas can be then further investigated via the instrument’s LabScan mode, which is able to separate and quantify compounds down to part per trillion levels.
Contact us to learn more about how AROMA-VOC can turn any vehicle into a mobile air monitoring laboratory in less than an hour. No buildout required.
UPDATE: AROMA-VOC Onsite with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Comments Off on UPDATE: AROMA-VOC Onsite with the Colorado Department of Public Health and EnvironmentAROMA-VOC is now onsite with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for a one-month combined fixed and mobile study on oil and gas operations in the Denver area. AROMA-VOC brings unique capabilities for state and municipal air quality professionals to rapidly respond to, monitor, map, and quantify hazardous air pollutants, such as benzene and 1,3-butadiene down to part per trillion detection limits in a vehicle. The robust design of AROMA-VOC enables large geography, lab-quality assessments without requiring costly mobile laboratory buildouts or extensive training. Contact us to learn more about how AROMA can help you improve your air quality response capabilities.
DATA: Performance Validation of AROMA-VOC in 30-Day Autonomous Remote Study
Comments Off on DATA: Performance Validation of AROMA-VOC in 30-Day Autonomous Remote StudyIn a study showcasing the ability of AROMA-VOC to continuously gather high-quality data in remote locations, the instrument showed excellent agreeability with a Bay Area Air Quality Management District GC-FID over the course of 30-days. Operating completely autonomously, AROMA-VOC was configured to co-sample with the GC-FID and performed daily calibration verifications without any operator intervention. The analyzer showed no outliers or data drift during the study.
UPDATE: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to Deploy AROMA-VOC
Comments Off on UPDATE: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to Deploy AROMA-VOCThe Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is working with Entanglement Technologies to gain understanding and data on refinery emissions and their temporal and spatial variations in the Centennial State. Using AROMA-VOC, the CDPHE will be able to measure key hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) frequently used in the petrochemical industry such as BTEX and 1,3-butadiene down to part per trillion detection limits in both a long-term fixed study and a mobile, large geography assessment. The highly stable analyzer core of AROMA-VOC facilitates long-term remote deployments with fully remote instrumentation operation for the fixed monitoring portion of the campaign. The mobile monitoring campaign, using the same AROMA-VOC, will explore spatial variations of the hazardous air pollutants, and will allow the CDPHE to gather critical data over hundreds of miles on the potential exposures of these pollutants to nearby communities.