Characterizing the performance of two optical particle counters (Grimm OPC1.108 and OPC1.109) under urban aerosol conditions

J Aerosol Sci. 2010 Oct;41(10):953-962. doi: 10.1016/j.jaerosci.2010.07.007.

Abstract

The performance of Grimm optical particle counters (OPC, models 1.108 and 1.109) was characterized under urban aerosol conditions. Number concentrations were well correlated. The different lower cut-off diameters (0.25 and 0.3 μm) give an average difference of 23.5%. Both detect less than 10% of the total particle concentration (0.01-1 μm; Differential Mobility Analyzer), but in the respective size ranges, differences are <10%. OPC number size distributions were converted to mass concentrations using instrument-specific factors given by the manufacturer. Mass concentrations for OPC1.108 were 60% higher than for OPC1.109 and (in case of OPC1.109) much lower than those measured with an impactor in the relevant size range or a TSP filter. Using the C-factor correction suggested by the manufacturer, OPC1.109 underestimated mass concentrations by 21% (impactor) and by about 36% (TSP filter), which is in the range of comparability of co-located different mass concentration methods (Hitzenberger, Berner, Maenhaut, Cafmeyer, Schwarz, & Mueller et al., 2004).