Measurements of nitrogen dioxide concentrations at rural sites in the United Kingdom using diffusion tubes

Abstract

Nitrogen dioxide concentrations have been measured at rural sites in the United Kingdom and have revealed a marked spatial variation. The annual mean NO2 concentration varies from approximately 1 microg Nm-3 in Northern Ireland to approximately 7 microg Nm-3 in East Anglia. Though the temporal resolution of the diffusion tube method is limited by exposure periods of 2-4 weeks, it was possible to detect a marked seasonal variation in NO2 concentration at all sites, with higher values in the winter than in the summer. This is in contrast to the small seasonal variation previously observed at sites in London. Sulphur dioxide concentrations were measured daily using a bubbler method and, if expressed in terms of mass of sulphur and nitrogen, the SO2 and NO2 annual mean concentrations were similar. This is in contrast to an S/N ratio of greater than 3 in total UK emissions of SO2 and NOx. It seems likely that this difference is due to a combination of the different spatial distributions and heights of emissions of SO2 and NOx, the influence of local sources of NOx, and the smaller S/N ratio in Continental European emissions.