A high-throughput, turbulent-mixing, condensation aerosol concentrator for direct aerosol collection as a liquid suspension

Abstract

Trace measurement of aerosol chemical composition in workplace atmospheres requires the development of high-throughput aerosol collectors that are compact, hand-portable, and can be operated using personal pumps. We describe the design and characterization of a compact, high flow, Turbulent-mixing Condensation Aerosol-in-Liquid Concentrator (TCALC) that allows direct collection of aerosols as liquid suspensions, for off-line chemical, biological, or microscopy analysis. The TCALC unit, measuring approximately 12 × 16 × 18 cm, operates at an aerosol sample flowrate of up to 10 L min⁻¹, using rapid mixing of a hot flow saturated with water vapor and a cold aerosol sample flow, thereby promoting condensational growth of aerosol particles. We investigated the effect of operating parameters such as vapor temperature, growth tube wall temperature, and aerosol sample flowrate, along with the effect of particle diameter, inlet humidity, aerosol concentration, and operation time on TCALC performance. Nanoparticles with an initial aerodynamic diameter ≥25 nm could grow to droplet diameters >1400 nm with an efficiency ≥80%. Good droplet growth efficiency was achieved for sampled aerosol relative humidity ≥9%. We measured complete aerosol collection for concentrations of ≤3 × 10⁵ cm⁻³. The results showed good agreement between the particulate mass collected through the liquid collector and direct filter collection. The TCALC eliminates the need for sample preparation and filter digestion during chemical analysis, thereby increasing sample recovery and substantially improving the limit of detection and sensitivity of off-line trace analysis of collected liquid samples.