3.2.

2 Absorption Train
This method involves the absorption of the pollutant gas into a reagent solution.
Typical apparatus is illustrated in Figure 3.5. Air is drawn through a filter to
remove any aerosol partióles, which may interfere with the analysis, and then
bubbled through a reagent solution held inside a Drechsel flask. The air then
passes through a trap that protects the pump from any moisture. Flaked calcium
chloride, silica gel, or glass wool can be used in the trap. The flow rate is con-
trolled by a flow regulator and measured by means of a flow meter. The volume
of air sampled over a sampling period can then be calculated. Altematively, the
volume of air may be determined by a gas meter. Instead of a Drechsel bottle a
midget impinger may be used (Figure 3.6). Impingers require lower amounts of
reagents and lower sampling volumes, and henee shorter averaging periods.
Specific reagents have been developed for S02, N02, NH3, 03, Cl2, HC1, H2S,
and HCHO, among others. After sampling, the solution is brought to the labo-
ratory and generally analysed by titrimetry or spectrophotometry.
The reagent has to be specific to the pollutant gas and the absorption
should be quantitative, or at least the absorption efficiency should be known.
The absorption efficiency can be assessed by placing two absorbers in series
and seeing if there is any carryover into the second absorber. The main dis-
advantages of the absorption train are the rather long sampling times (up to
24 h) required to obtain sufficient sample for analysis and interferences by
other pollutants. Many of the reagents are prone to interference from non-
target gases and usually some method of eliminating the interference, such

Filter paper Glass wool

absorbing solution

Figure 3.5 The absorption train for sampling gases