Glossary

This glossary provides definitions of common terms used in the context of air pollution.

You can navigate quickly to a term using the alphabetic links below; clicking on the terms will show their definition.

Glossary 



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  • Global Warming
  • Gravimetric Equivalent PM10 Data
    Monitoring of PM10 levels in the UK has to date, been largely based upon the use of TEOM analysers. A principal concern with the TEOM instrument is that the filter is held at an elevated temperature (50°C) in order to minimise errors associated with the evaporation and condensation of water vapour. This can lead to the loss of the more volatile species (some hydrocarbons, nitrates etc.) and has led to the identification of differences between TEOM and gravimetric measurements at co-located sites. In the past, a factor of 1.3 was applied to all TEOM-measured concentrations to estimate the gravimetric equivalent. Further studies commissioned by Defra, the Scottish Executive, the Welsh Assembly Government and the Department for the Environment in Northern Ireland to investigate these effects, and to provide a more robust relationship between the TEOM and the European transfer gravimetric reference method, have led to the development of the Volatile Correction Method (VCM), http://www.volatile-correction-model.info/. The VCM uses measurements of volatile particulate matter made by nearby FDMS instruments to correct TEOM measurements for the loss of such volatile material. The corrected measurements have been demonstrated to be equivalent to the gravimetric reference equivalent.
  • Greenhouse Gases

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