TY - CONF A1 - Tiebe, Carlo A1 - Banach, Ulrich A1 - Hübert, Thomas A1 - Gawlitza, Kornelia A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - Development of a gas standard generator N2 - Pollution through emission of toxic gases is an increasing problem for the environment. It affects similarly agricultural, industrial and urban areas. In future, environmental emissions in ambient air must be monitored at even lower concentrations as nowadays. One environmental relevant compound is ammonia and its conversion product ammonium that have strong negative impact on human health and ecosystems. Most ammonia measurements in ambient air are performed in the range below 1000 nmol·mol-1 and thus there is a need for reliable traceable ammonia gas standards and in addition in situ analytical procedures for monitoring (in ambient air to avoid that thresholds are exceeded). Therefore, the use of reference materials is necessary for development accompanying test or for calibration, e. g. of structure-integrated sensors and mobile multi-gas sensors. The developed gas standard generator produces gas mixtures that comply with the metrological traceability for ammonia gas standards in the desired environmentally relevant measurement range. The method is based on the permeation of ammonia through a membrane at constant temperature and pressure. The resulting ammonia penetrant gas flow is then mixed with a carrier gas flow to generate a gas standard flow of known concentration. The dynamic rage is enlarged by using a two dilution steps. Depending on the permeation rate, generable molar fractions are possible in the range nmol·mol-1 to a few µmol·mol-1. We present the design of an ammonia gas standard generator and first results of the characterisation of its individual components supporting the uncertainty assessment according to GUM for stable gas concentrations in this range. The relative uncertainty of the generated ammonia gas standard is smaller than 4 % (k = 2). T2 - Colloquium of Optical Spectrometry (COSP) CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 27.11.2017 KW - Gas standard generator KW - Permeation method KW - Ammonia PY - 2017 AN - OPUS4-43337 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Tiebe, Carlo A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - Two tasks in environmental monitoring - calibration and characterization of gas sensors and remote sensing with multicopter platforms - Part 2 N2 - Emissions of ammonia into the environment are mainly caused by agriculture, but also by combustion processes in waste and by road traffic. Even at low concentrations, this substance is not only an odour nuisance, but also a substance with ecological and climatic relevance. Therefore, BAM tested commercial electrochemical, and metal oxide based sensors, which have limited suitability for measuring in the environmental molar fraction range. Alternatively, own developments for the detection of ammonia in the trace range were implemented, wherein the analyte is measured by changing the fluorescence of a BODIPY dye at 550 nm by means of a portable fluorescence sensor directly from the gas phase. For the calibration of ammonia sensors and measuring instruments, a stationary system based on the mixture of certified test gases from pressure cylinders with calibrated mass flow controllers is available. A test gas generator was developed for on-site calibration and testing of sensors and measuring devices. The generation of ammonia-containing gases in the environmental relevant range of levels below 1000 nmol/mol is carried out by the permeation method according to ISO 6145-10. For the traceability of ammonia, standards are provided and further developed by the National Metrological Institutes and designated institutes. Metrological standards are based on SI units and are a basis for traceability of sensors or gas analysers. T2 - Aarhus University, Department of Environmental Science, External seminar with Matthias Bartholmai and Carlo Tiebe CY - Roskilde, Denmark DA - 29.08.2018 KW - Environmental monitoring KW - Test gas generation KW - Fluorescence sensor KW - Ammonia PY - 2018 AN - OPUS4-45842 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Tiebe, Carlo T1 - Novel mobile multi-gas sensor for ammonia detection in the environment N2 - Pollution through emission of toxic gases becomes an increasing problem for the environment in agricultural, industrial and urban areas. In future, environmental emissions as well as ambient air must be monitored at even lower concentrations as nowadays. Consequently, demands arouse for measuring concentrations as low as the lower ppm or even ppb range. Current state-of-the-art technologies, as for instance electrochemical sensors, have reached their limits in this regard. The developed ammonia gas standard generator produces standard gas mixtures which comply with the metrological traceability for ammonia gas standards in the desired environmentally relevant measurement range of e. g. 0.5 to 500 nmol/mol. This gas standard preparation method is based on the permeation of ammonia through a membrane at a constant temperature as well as the mixing of this permeated gas with a carrier gas to adjust a gas standard of known concentration. The ammonia gas standard is suitable for the calibration of standard optical methods, e. g cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) and multi-gas sensors. The detection of gaseous ammonia in the lower ppm or even ppb range is obtained by incorporation of a fluorescent dye, which shows fluorescence enhancement in the presence of the analyte, into a polymer support being responsible for the accumulation of the analyte. The use of optical fluorescence as transduction mechanism enables high sensitivity as well as high temporal resolution. Here, we present first results on such a sensor system including the use of the developed gas standard generator for calibration issues. Additional benefits, particularly of fluorescence-based sensors, are their capability for miniaturization and potential multiplex mode. Beside the development of a highly sensitive and selective sensor, the integration of such systems into mobile sensor devices is addressed. These sensors and sensor systems are developed and will be validated and operated in form of functional models for the application areas, structure-integrated sensors and mobile multi-gas sensors. T2 - 2nd MetNH3 workshop on ammonia measurement methodology CY - Bern, Switzerland DA - 09.05.2017 KW - Ammonia KW - Permeation KW - Gas standard preparation KW - Fluorescence-based sensors PY - 2017 AN - OPUS4-40206 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bayat, Mehmet Emin A1 - Kipphardt, Heinrich A1 - Tiebe, Carlo A1 - Tuma, Dirk A1 - Engelhard, Carsten T1 - Trace-Level Ammonia–Water Interactions in Hydrogen: Challenges in Gas Purity Analysis Using Optical-Feedback Cavity-Enhanced Absorption Spectroscopy (OF-CEAS) N2 - Ammonia is a critical impurity in hydrogen fuel due to its irreversible poisoning effect on proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Therefore, international standards (e.g., ISO 14687) set a stringent threshold of 100 nmol/mol. Furthermore, with the growing potential use of ammonia as a hydrogen carrier, its accurate quantification is becoming increasingly important. However, the presence of trace humidity poses analytical challenges, as ammonia may interact with water or interfaces, thereby affecting its detectability. Therefore, the goal of this work is to enable accurate trace ammonia quantification for hydrogen purity measurements through fundamental studies of the methodological challenges. Here, low-pressure sampling (ultra)long-path Optical-Feedback Cavity-Enhanced Absorption Spectroscopy (OF-CEAS) was applied with an effective optical path length of approximately 6.17 km. We studied three average amounts of ammonia: (38.2 ± 0.8) nmol/mol, (74.8 ± 0.7) nmol/mol, and (112.1 ± 1.2) nmol/mol. Furthermore, these amounts were investigated at trace-humidity levels ranging from 0.8 to 8.5 ppmV. We observed a systematic, nonlinear, and humidity-dependent positive measurement bias of up to + (1.0 ± 0.2) nmol/mol at the maximum investigated trace-humidity volume fraction of 8.5 ppmV. This bias was not caused by spectral interference but rather by water-induced accumulation of ammonia within the optical cavity. Moreover, time-resolved measurements in the presence of trace ammonia showed that water desorption follows first-order kinetics, whereas water adsorption followed mixed-order kinetics with an apparent reaction order of 1.57 ± 0.03. Distinct hydration states of surface-bound ammonia were identified, whereas under dry conditions and with increasing amounts of ammonia, enhanced surface adhesion through intermolecular clustering was observed. In addition, the presence of ammonium species within the sorption layer was indirectly confirmed by our experiments. In conclusion, we provide a deeper insight into trace-level ammonia–water interactions and establish a framework for optimizing methodologies, particularly for (ultra)long-path optical gas measurement systems. KW - Ammonia KW - Hydrogen KW - OF-CEAS KW - Humidity KW - Surface Interactions KW - Adsorption PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-643627 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsmeasuresciau.5c00105 SN - 2694-250X SP - 1 EP - 15 PB - American Chemical Society (ACS) AN - OPUS4-64362 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bayat, Mehmet A1 - Kipphardt, Heinrich A1 - Tiebe, Carlo A1 - Engelhard, Carsten T1 - Effect of Trace Humidity on Trace Ammonia Quantification N2 - Hydrogen is receiving growing attention as a promising medium for energy storage and transportation. Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells are a key technology for energy conversion from hydrogen. However, high purity hydrogen is required for this technology, as described in standards such as ISO 14687:2019. A critical impurity that impairs PEM efficiency is ammonia, for which a limit value of 100 nmol/mol applies. In addition, the maximum amount of humidity is specified with 5 µmol/mol. The presence of humidity in hydrogen at levels up to 50 times higher than ammonia raises the critical question of whether ammonia can still be quantified accurately in the lower nmol/mol range without interference from water. In addition, the general question arises as to whether the critical analyte, ammonia, can still be detected at all, given the expected surface effects at such amounts of trace humidity. In this work, we describe the influence of trace humidity on the surface behavior of adsorbed ammonia on stainless steel. Samples with ammonia at approximately 100 nmol/mol in hydrogen, with trace humidity levels ranging from 3 µmol/mol to 10 µmol/mol, were carefully prepared using dynamic mixing. Humidification was conducted using an advanced saturation method. These samples were investigated under atmospheric conditions using low pressure sampling Optical Feedback Cavity Enhanced Absorption Spectroscopy (OFCEAS). From the observed time-dependent signals, kinetics were determined and analyzed, yielding insights on the strength of the adsorption behavior of the analytes. T2 - ANAKON 2025 CY - Leipzig, Germany DA - 10.03.2025 KW - OF-CEAS KW - Hydrogen KW - Ammonia KW - Water KW - Humidity KW - Kinetics KW - Adsorption PY - 2025 UR - https://veranstaltungen.gdch.de/microsite/index.cfm?l=11713&sp_id=2&selSiteID=vplanner AN - OPUS4-64046 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Tiebe, Carlo A1 - Gawlitza, Kornelia T1 - Gas standards for the calibration of novel fluorescence sensors for ammonia N2 - Ammonia and its conversion product ammonium have a strong negative impact on human health and ecosystems. Most ammonia measurements in ambient air are performed in the molar fraction range (0.5 to 500) nmol/mol. There is a need for reliable traceable ammonia gas standards as well as in situ analytical procedures for the monitoring of ammonia in ambient air. The permeation method is an effective tool for dynamically generating precise gas standards with a low uncertainty in the concentration range of a few nmol/mol to several µmol/mol in an inert carrier gas, e. g. pure nitrogen or purified ambient air. Here, we present our ammonia gas standard generator as well as results of the characterisation of its individual components supporting the uncertainty assessment according to GUM for stable gas concentrations in this range. In order to detect ammonia in the nmol/mol-range, a suitable sensor has to be developed. In this contribution, we therefore additionally present first approaches on the development of such a sensor using optical fluorescence as transduction mechanism due to its intrinsically high sensitivity and high spatial resolution. Incorporation of a fluorescent dye, which shows fluorescence enhancement in the presence of ammonia, into a polymer matrix allows to reversibly recognize low amounts of ammonia. It can be concluded that fluorescence sensor is a robust tool for measurements of ammonia; however it needs calibration for the planed use. T2 - MetNH3-workshop on the progress in ammonia metrology CY - Braunschweig, Germany DA - 24.02.2016 KW - Ammonia KW - Fluorescence sensor KW - Permeation KW - Test gas generation PY - 2016 AN - OPUS4-35810 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -