Miniature Personal Ozone Monitor Based on UV Absorbance

A new portable instrument has been developed that offers rapid detection of ozone at the parts per billion (ppb) level for personal exposure monitoring. The personal ozone monitor is based on the EPA Federal Reference Method of UV absorbance and has the advantage of being small (10 cm x 7.6 cm x 3.8 cm), lightweight (0.3 kg), low power (2.9 W), and battery-operated. The instrument can be worn by an individual during normal daily activities because it is unaffected by humidity, physical orientation, temperature, and vibration. In order to eliminate any significant interference from water vapor, Nafion tubing was installed before the detection cell, and the optical path was lined with quartz. A precision of 1.5 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) and limit of detection of 4.5 ppbv (S/N = 3) was demonstrated with the instrument making measurements every 10 s.