AQESHOW - Abstract

Abstract Information :

Mercury is an air pollutant, widely researched due to its toxicity and its ability to bio-accumulate in the food chain. Gaseous elemental mercury is the most common form of mercury in the atmosphere, estimated to be at over 95% of the total mercury in air. In urban and industrial areas, the upper concentration of total gaseous mercury (TGM) is around 15 ng/m3 while concentrations in rural areas can be ten times lower. It is well known that emission sources produce other oxidized and particulate forms of Hg and these emissions strongly influence the fate and transportation of Hg on a more localized basis. The monitoring of Hg in the atmosphere is not trivial as the concentration is extremely low and the oxidized forms of Hg are difficult to sample. Instrumental comparisons typically provide similar trending data but the actual Hg concentration reported can vary enormously because of the calibration methods applied and various sampling approaches. In this presentation, I will be present an overview of the current status for both online and offline monitoring Hg systems.