Articles | Volume 13, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1001-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1001-2020
Research article
 | 
03 Mar 2020
Research article |  | 03 Mar 2020

Portable calibrator for NO based on the photolysis of N2O and a combined NO2∕NO∕O3 source for field calibrations of air pollution monitors

John W. Birks, Andrew A. Turnipseed, Peter C. Andersen, Craig J. Williford, Stanley Strunk, Brian Carpenter, and Christine A. Ennis

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Cited articles

Abman, S. H.: Inhaled nitric oxide for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension, Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology, Vol. 218, Springer, Berlin, 257–276, 2013. 
Andersen, P. C., Williford, C. J., and Birks, J. W.: Method to Produce a Calibration Reagent or Therapeutic Gas by Exposing a Precursor Gas to Ultraviolet Light, U.S. Patent No. US 10,207,927 B2, 19 February 2019, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Washington, DC, USA, 2019. 
Atkinson, R., Baulch, D. L., Cox, R. A., Crowley, J. N., Hampson, R. F., Hynes, R. G., Jenkin, M. E., Rossi, M. J., and Troe, J.: Evaluated kinetic and photochemical data for atmospheric chemistry: Volume I – gas phase reactions of Ox, HOx, NOx and SOx species, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 4, 1461–1738, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-4-1461-2004, 2004. 
Bertram, T. H., Cohen, R. C., Thorn III, W. J., and Chou, P. M.: Consistency of ozone and nitrogen oxides standards at tropospherically relevant mixing ratios, J. Air Waste Manage. Assoc., 55, 1473–1479,
doi10.1080/10473289.2005.10464740, 2005. 
Birks, J. W. and Bollinger, M. J.: Method and Apparatus to Detect a Gas by Measuring Ozone Depletion, U.S. Patent No. 7,045,359 B2, 16 May 2006, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Washington, DC, USA, 2006. 
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Short summary
We describe a portable calibration source of nitric oxide (NO) based on the photolysis of nitrous oxide. Combining this with a previous photolytic ozone (O3) source yields a calibrator that produces known mixing ratios of NO, O3, and nitrogen dioxide (NO2); NO2 is produced by the reaction of NO with O3. This portable NO2/NO/O3 calibration source requires no external gas cylinders and can be used as a standard to calibrate O3 and NOx air pollution monitors in the field.
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