Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Great Basin CESU

archived

The USGS is offering a funding opportunity to a CESU partner for research in measuring the deposition of atmospheric dust that is generated by wind erosion and that can degrade environments, diminish air quality, and affect public health across much of the western United Sates. Federal agencies and research partners currently lack a method for characterizing ambient aerosol concentrations that is broadly accepted and robust under widely variable field conditions. For this reason, advancing knowledge about dust and improving land management under wind-erosion conditions require first the development of a field instrument that can measure particulate matter (PM) in its critical size classes: <2.5 micrometers (m), (2) <10 m (PM10), and (3) all (⿿total⿝) suspended PM sizes. This opportunity calls for (1) the development of a prototype dust sampler and its testing under field conditions, and (2) the deployment of the instrument for field research. The research site will likely be in an area currently under investigation for wind erosion of NPS and BLM land in Utah with collaborators in USGS, USDA-ARS, NPS, and BLM, for which arrangements are currently in place. The research requires first the application of experienced engineering and knowledge on dust-source characterization and PM sampling to combine and modify existing technologies for mating into a stand-alone unit. Among the initial challenges are (1) to identify appropriate existing components, including low-power controllable pumps; size separating devices that work at low pressure drops; plausible sensors for light scattering or extinction; low-power control electronics; (2) electronically combine these components with a power-management system; (3) mechanically combine these components in a package that is practicable for field deployment in a range of harsh conditions, (4) collect dust samples, and (5) complete (1-4) so that the costs of a single unit is between $2 and $10K. Further development would add novel capabilities of remote control of operating parameters and data broadcasting through satellite communication.

High