DEVELOPMENT OF INSTRUMENTATION FOR CONTINUOUS ONLINE MONITORING OF NONMETHANE ORGANIC-CARBON IN AIR EMISSIONS

Non-methane organic carbon (NMOC) is a measure of total organic carbon in an air emission, excluding that from methane. Thus, it measures th e total amount of carbon, irrespective of the structure and functional groups in the molecule. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA ) Method 25 is used for quantification of NMOC in emission sources and in ambient air. This method involves laboratory analysis of collected air samples and cannot be used for real-time measurements. It is pron e to interferences from CO,, CII, and CO, as well as moisture. In this paper, a novel method for continuous, on-line monitoring of NMOC in a ir emissions and ambient air is presented. Detection limits are at ppb levels, and interference of permanent gases have been eliminated.