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Quantification of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gases in Ambient Air of a Livestock House Using a Single Near-Infrared Cavity-Ringdown Spectroscopy Instrument

Literature Reference
Poster
Authors

Gregor Lucic, Shaojie Zhuang, Philippe Van Overbeke, Magdalena hofmann, Renato Winkler, David Kim-Hak

Presented at

AGU 18

Abstract
• Ammonia is a toxic pollutant that has harmful effects on human health and the environment. Agricultural activities and processes, such as fertilizer use, decomposition of biological material and animal excretions, account for most of the NH3 emitted into the atmosphere.
 
• The characterization and quantification of NH3 emissions in livestock environments are pivotal in assessing the issue and in helping agencies craft environmental regulations.
 
• Measuring NH3 emission in naturally ventilated livestock houses is a technical challenge due to irregular air flow patterns and low concentration levels. No general agreement on a reference technique has been established.
 
• In response, at a dairy farm part of the Flemish Institute for Agriculture and Fisheries Research (ILVO), a sampling line system was installed throughout the barn to measure NH3 levels in various locations using an in-situ, real-time NH3 analyzer – a Picarro G2508.