Accession Number:

ADA399966

Title:

Live Biological Particle Measurement Comparison of Slit Sampler Performance in a Biological Aerosol Chamber

Descriptive Note:

Technical rept.

Corporate Author:

DEFENCE RESEARCH ESTABLISHMENT SUFFIELDRALSTON (ALBERTA)

Personal Author(s):

• Ho, Jim
• Spence, Melvin R.
• Duncan, Scott

Report Date:

2001-10-01

Pagination or Media Count:

42.0

Abstract:

The history on slit to agar samplers shows that the first published description was on a system using 10 cm petri plates. At some point after the 1950s samplers that collected biological aerosol particles on 15 cm plates appeared. More recent patents have been filed that described slit samplers using 10 cm plates, usually citing economics as the prime motivation. Yet workers have cautioned that the smaller plates can become saturated when heavy aerosol clouds are encountered. In applications where the slit sampler is used as reference collector when biological detectors are under test, heavy clouds may often be encountered. This report will demonstrate how to determine performance characteristics of slit samplers designed for either 10 or 15 cm plates. It will also show the importance of controlled replicate measurements providing data suitable for rigorous statistical analysis. The results indicate that for measuring biological clouds of between 5 to 30 agent containing particles per liter of air ACPLA the 15 cm plate sampler design is more efficient than those targeted for the smaller collection surface. A statistical method has been employed to test difference between regression slopes.

Descriptors:

• *PARTICLE SIZE
• *BIOLOGICAL AEROSOLS
• *SAMPLERS
• *BIOLOGICAL AGENT DETECTORS
• CANADA
• REGRESSION ANALYSIS
• LABORATORY PROCEDURES
• STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
• LABORATORY EQUIPMENT
• AGAR

Subject Categories:

• Test Facilities, Equipment and Methods
• Chemical, Biological and Radiological Warfare

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE