Experiments with the Stoeber centrifugal aerosol spectrometer: Calibration and test experiments

A centrifugal aerosol spectrometer was calibrated using quasi monodisperse polystyrene latex aerosols. The calibration was executed under experimental conditions used in sampling with flow rates of 0.1 standard liter per minute (sl/min), 0.43 sl/min, and 1.9 sl/min. The reproducibility of the deposition distance of the aerosol particles was determined. The standard deviation amounted to about 0.6 percent. The accuracy of the determination of the particle diameter is generally lower (standard deviation 0.6 to 1.5 percent) because it also depends on the slope of the curve representing the logarithmic relation between the deposition distance and the aerodynamic diameter. The reproducibility of the profiles of the deposits is moderate. Strong asymmetric profiles are sometimes observed. The relative resolving power of the spectrometer varies with the experimental conditions.