Instrumentation and Equipment for Air Chemistry/Meteorology Undergraduate Research and Education

Millersville University, Millersville PA

Investigators

Abstract

Atmospheric Science (41) Adapting an upgraded and expanded suite of instruments and equipment for a mobile atmospheric research unit and tethered balloon facility for undergraduate field studies in air chemistry and air pollution boundary layer meteorology has allowed us to implement new educational initiatives (McGinn, M.K. and W-M. Roth, 1999: Preparing Students for Competent Scientific Practice: Implications of Recent Research in Science and Technology Studies. EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER. Vol. 28, No. 3, 1999) . Students have engaged in the practice of science by pursuing investigations of their own interests (scientific inquiry), and collaborate with peers to solve problems, test algorithms, and develop synergistic insights and social interactions (scientific discourse). Gas-phase and particle samplers/analyzers, mounted for complete portability, are used to collect/measure CO, SO2, O3, NOx, VOCs, and PM2.5/10 in both lab and field settings. Students in Air Chemistry work in small groups, each responsible for the calibration and maintenance of instruments; collection, analysis, and quality assessment of measurements; visual representation of data; and dissemination of results. These tools are used to authenticate concepts in quantitative analysis such as filter correlation methods, pulsed fluorescence, chemiluminescence, UV photometry, KI oxidation, GC/MS analysis, and laser scatterometry (nephelometry). Each group investigates inter-relationships among gas-phase species and correlations with the meteorological conditions and regional measurements. Collaborative learning is stimulated through open discussion as information diffuses and discursive practices emerge within and between groups to the whole-class level. Students participate in the assessment of the project through content analysis of lab journals maintained while serving in control and experimental groups, and are expected to produce a joint-reflection paper based on interactive discourse. Students in Statistical Meteorology, Boundary Layer Meteorology, Environmental Chemistry, Atmospheric Thermodynamics, and Meteorological Instruments, Measurement, and Observing Systems are benefitting by engaging in the scientific process and exploration of scientific concepts through the development of problem-solving skills, critical thinking, and collaboration. The mobile air quality lab and ground station for tethered balloon operations produces vertical profiles of meteorological variables and ozone concentrations as part of three major multi-institutional field research programs (NARSTO-NE 1995, 1996; NARSTONE-OPS 1998-2001). Students participate as scientist apprentices responsible and accountable for research activities from logistics to data collection and publication. Chemical analyzers and air samplers are deployed in conjunction with a tethered multi-sonde atmospheric profiler to study the relationship between boundary layer evolution and the variability of surface trace gas species. The portability of instruments deployed in a mobile unit allows measurements to be obtained near sources of pollutants and at other locations representative of the regional background. Portability also enables outreach to K-12 and community groups. Concentrations of gas-phase criteria pollutants are available in real-time through a link to the meteorology Web site at www.atmos.millersv.edu. Also available are project assessments and results of scientific investigations using these instruments.