Fine particle (PM2.5) measurement methodology, quality assurance procedures, and pilot results of the EXPOLIS study

EXPOLIS is a European multicenter (Athens, Basel, Grenoble, Helsinki, Milan , and Prague) air pollution exposure study. It is the first international, population-based, large-scale study, where personal exposures to PM,, aeros ol particles (together with volatile organic compounds and carbon monoxide) are being monitored. EXPOLIS is performed in six different centers across Europe, the sampled aerosol concentrations vary greatly, and the microenvir onmental samples are not collected with the same equipment as the personal samples. Therefore careful equipment selection, methods development and tes ting, and thorough quality assurance and quality control (QA & QC) procedur es are essential for producing reliable and comparable PM,, data. This pape r introduces the equipment, the laboratory test results, the pilot results, the standard operating procedures, and the QA & QC procedures of EXPOLIS. Test results show good comparability and repeatability between personal and microenvironmental monitors for PM2.5 at different concentration levels me asured across Europe in EXPOLIS centers.