History of Metrohm IC – Part 5

In the fifth part in our ongoing series about the history of ion chromatography development at Metrohm, we now focus on automated air quality monitoring with the 2060 MARGA instrument.

The importance of clean air cannot be understated. Air pollution is one of the major environmental risks to human health; it can cause strokes, heart disease, lung cancer, and both chronic and acute respiratory diseases. Additionally, the contribution of such pollution to climate change is of significant scientific interest.

Monitoring air quality is of increasing concern, and thankfully more and more companies are taking responsibility for their input and looking for ways to measure and mitigate their environmental contribution.

What is MARGA?

MARGA (Monitor for AeRosols and Gases in ambient Air) was developed in the 1990's by Metrohm Process Analytics in cooperation with the Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN) (Figure 1).

Figure 1. The original MARGA 1S air monitoring system, developed in the 1990's by Metrohm Process Analytics.

This instrument application offered a new approach in which gases and aerosols sampled from the same air mass are separated from each other by selectively dissolving them in water. The resulting solutions (available every hour) are then analyzed using ion chromatography with conductivity detection. Separating the two fractions from each other allows for the detection of important precursor gases and ionic species found in the aerosols.

Collection of water-soluble ions and analysis by ion chromatography:

Gases: HCl, HNO₃, HNO₂, SO₂, NH₃
Aerosols: Cl^-, NO₃^-, SO₄^2-, NH₄⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, *F^-

*also possible with the 2060 MARGA (Figure 2)

This new analyzer application was a huge success at that time. However, in the meantime Metrohm Process Analytics was busy implementing more modular flexibility to their process analyzers. That’s why in 2018, based on the all-new 2060 online analysis platform from Metrohm Process Analytics, the 2060 MARGA (Figure 2) was introduced.

To learn more about how MARGA is used in real life situations, download our free technical notes below.

Technical notes for MARGA

Figure 2. The Metrohm Process Analytics solution to unattended, automated air quality analysis: the 2060 MARGA M.

Featuring state of the art 2060 software to automate analysis 24/7, brand new hardware adaptable for modular flexibility, and the dependable and well-known MagIC Net software, the 2060 MARGA is the right solution to gain insight of the effects of particulate matter on health and the environment. This instrument is available in two versions:

2060 MARGA M (Monitoring)

The 2060 MARGA M (Figure 2) is ideal for unattended routine monitoring at a permanent site.

Everything is packed into a single instrument, with separate subcabinets for the sample collection wet part, ion analysis cabinet (with two IC channels and column oven for anion and cation determinations), plus reagent containers with level sensors.

2060 MARGA R (Research)

A flexible version, ideal for research applications, features the 2060 user interface and sample collection wet part.

Sample analysis is carried out on a stand-alone Metrohm 940 Professional IC Vario TWO/SeS/PP, including sequential suppression for the anion analysis channel. Installed on-site for a limited time campaign, the 2060 MARGA R works unattended in the same way as the 2060 MARGA M. When not required for field use, the 940 Ion Chromatograph can be put to work in the laboratory, using an external PC and MagIC Net, to run any of the multitude of applications available from Metrohm.

Figure 3. The 2060 MARGA offers hourly data and easy to read trend charts for a full overview of gas and aerosol analysis.

The 2060 MARGA is designed for monitoring in remote locations but it’s never far from home. By using a direct internet connection, the 2060 MARGA performance can be checked remotely, adjustments can be made, and results can be evaluated at any time.

Figure 4. World map showing the locations of installed MARGA instruments from Metrohm Process Analytics.

Monitoring air quality around the world

MARGA systems from Metrohm have been used by many official agencies and research organizations globally to monitor air quality in a completely autonomous way.

Scotland

The MARGA participated in a program focusing on measurement and evaluation of the long-range, transboundary transmission of air-polluting substances in Europe (European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme, «EMEP»).

This research was performed in Auchencorth Moss, approximately 20 kilometers south of Edinburgh in Scotland, with the objective of analyzing to what degree crops and natural ecosystems, as well as the rural population, are exposed to airborne pollutants.

Learn more about this application here.

Aerosols without borders: Investigating long-range aerosol transport in Scotland

Figure 5. Air pollution due to New Year’s Eve fireworks celebrations in the Netherlands: aerosol concentrations of selected compounds

Netherlands

Fireworks are full of water-soluble ions and trace metals. The different colors are produced through the combustion of these chemical compounds. After combustion, the air is full of toxic gases and particles which can linger for a significant time, depending on weather patterns.

The 2060 MARGA can determine detailed gas and aerosol concentrations on an hourly basis completely autonomously, offering valuable scientific information about the effect of fireworks on local air quality (Figure 5).

For more information about this application, download our free technical note here.

The completely automated MARGA system for monitoring air quality

If you would like to read more scientific literature featuring the MARGA, then download our free overview:

Air monitoring with ion chromatography: An overview of the literature references