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averages using 18, 19, etc. as the divisor. If fewer than 18 hourly averages are available, but the 24-hour average would exceed the level of the standard when zeros are substituted for the missing values, subject to the rounding rule of paragraph (b) of this section, then this shall be considered a valid 24hour average. In this case, the 24-hour block average shall be computed as the sum of the available hourly averages divided by 24.

[61 FR 25579, May 22, 1996]

§ 50.5 National secondary ambient air quality standard for sulfur oxides (sulfur dioxide).

(a) The level of the 3-hour standard is 0.5 parts per million (ppm), not to be exceeded more than once per calendar year. The 3-hour averages shall be determined from successive nonoverlapping 3-hour blocks starting at midnight each calendar day and shall be rounded to 1 decimal place (fractional parts equal to or greater than 0.05 ppm shall be rounded up).

(b) Sulfur oxides shall be measured in the ambient air as sulfur dioxide by the reference method described in appendix A of this part or by an equivalent method designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter.

(c) To demonstrate attainment, the second-highest 3-hour average must be based upon hourly data that are at least 75 percent complete in each calendar quarter. A 3-hour block average shall be considered valid only if all three hourly averages for the 3-hour period are available. If only one or two hourly averages are available, but the 3-hour average would exceed the level of the standard when zeros are substituted for the missing values, subject to the rounding rule of paragraph (a) of this section, then this shall be considered a valid 3-hour average. In all cases, the 3-hour block average shall be computed as the sum of the hourly averages divided by 3.

[61 FR 25580, May 22, 1996]

850.6 National primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for PM10

(a) The level of the national primary and secondary 24-hour ambient air quality standards for particulate matter is 150 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3), 24-hour average concentration. The standards are attained when the expected number of days per calendar year with a 24-hour average concentration above 150 μg/m3, as determined in accordance with appendix K to this part, is equal to or less than one.

(b) The level of the national primary and secondary annual standards for particulate matter is 50 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3), annual arithmetic mean. The standards are attained when the expected annual arithmetic mean concentration, as determined in accordance with appendix K to this part, is less than or equal to 50 μg/m3.

(c) For the purpose of determining attainment of the primary and secondary standards, particulate matter shall be measured in the ambient air as PM10 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers) by:

(1) A reference method based on appendix J and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter, or

(2) An equivalent method designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter.

(d) The PM10 standards set forth in this section will no longer apply to an area not attaining these standards as of September 16, 1997, once EPA takes final action to promulgate a rule pursuant to section 172(e) of the Clean Air Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 7472(e)) applicable to the area. The PM10 standards set forth in this section will no longer apply to an area attaining these standards as of September 16, 1997, once EPA approves a State Implementation Plan (SIP) applicable to the area containing all PM10 control

measures

adopted and implemented by the State prior to September 16, 1997, and a section 110 SIP implementing the PM standards published on July 18, 1997.

SIP approvals are codified in 40 CFR part 52.

[52 FR 24663, July 1, 1987, as amended at 62 FR 38711, July 18, 1997]

$50.7 National primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for particulate matter.

(a) The national primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for particulate matter are:

(1) 15.0 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3) annual arithmetic mean concentration, and 65 μg/m3 24-hour average concentration measured in the ambient air as PM2.5 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 2.5 micrometers) by either:

(i) A reference method based on appendix L of this part and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter;

or

(ii) An equivalent method designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter.

(2) 50 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3) annual arithmetic mean concentration, and 150 μg/m3 24-hour average concentration measured in the ambient air as PM10 (particles with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers) by either:

(i) A reference method based on appendix M of this part and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter;

or

(ii) An equivalent method designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter.

sec

(b) The annual primary and ondary PM2.5 standards are met when the annual arithmetic mean concentration, as determined in accordance with appendix N of this part, is less than or equal to 15.0 micrograms per cubic meter.

(c) The 24-hour primary and secondary PM2.5 standards are met when the 98th percentile 24-hour concentration, as determined in accordance with appendix N of this part, is less than or equal to 65 micrograms per cubic meter.

(d) The annual primary and secondary PM10 standards are met when the annual arithmetic mean concentration, as determined in accordance with

appendix N of this part, is less than or equal to 50 micrograms per cubic meter.

(e) The 24-hour primary and secondary PM10 standards are met when the 99th percentile 24-hour concentration, as determined in accordance with appendix N of this part, is less than or equal to 150 micrograms per cubic meter.

[62 FR 38711, July 18, 1997]

$50.8 National primary ambient air quality standards for carbon monoxide.

(a) The national primary ambient air quality standards for carbon monoxide are:

(1) 9 parts per million (10 milligrams per cubic meter) for an 8-hour average concentration not to be exceeded more than once per year and

(2) 35 parts per million (40 milligrams per cubic meter) for a 1-hour average concentration not to be exceeded more than once per year.

(b) The levels of carbon monoxide in the ambient air shall be measured by:

(1) A reference method based on appendix C and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter, or

(2) An equivalent method designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter.

(c) An 8-hour average shall be considered valid if at least 75 percent of the hourly average for the 8-hour period are available. In the event that only six (or seven) hourly averages are available, the 8-hour average shall be computed on the basis of the hours available using six (or seven) as the divisor.

(d) When summarizing data for comparision with the standards, averages shall be stated to one decimal place. Comparison of the data with the levels of the standards in parts per million shall be made in terms of integers with fractional parts of 0.5 or greater rounding up.

[50 FR 37501, Sept. 13, 1985]

§ 50.9 National 1-hour primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for ozone.

(a) The level of the national 1-hour primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for ozone measured

by a reference method based on appendix D to this part and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter, is 0.12 parts per million (235 μg/m3). The standard is attained when the expected number of days per calendar year with maximum hourly average concentrations above 0.12 parts per million (235 μg/m3) is equal to or less than 1, as determined by appendix H to this part.

(b) The 1-hour standards set forth in this section will no longer apply to an area once EPA determines that the area has air quality meeting the 1-hour standard. Area designations are codified in 40 CFR part 81.

[62 FR 38894, July 18, 1997]

850.10 National 8-hour primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for ozone.

(a) The level of the national 8-hour primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for ozone, measured by a reference method based on appendix D to this part and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter, is 0.08 parts per million (ppm), daily maximum 8-hour average.

(b) The 8-hour primary and secondary ozone ambient air quality standards are met at an ambient air quality monitoring site when the average of the annual fourth-highest daily maximum 8hour average ozone concentration is less than or equal to 0.08 ppm, as determined in accordance with appendix I to this part.

[62 FR 38894, July 18, 1997]

§50.11 National primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for nitrogen dioxide.

(a) The level of the national primary ambient air quality standard for nitrogen dioxide is 0.053 parts per million (100 micrograms per cubic meter), annual arithmetic mean concentration.

(b) The level of national secondary ambient air quality standard for nitrogen dioxide is 0.053 parts per million (100 micrograms per cubic meter), annual arithmetic mean concentration.

(c) The levels of the standards shall be measured by:

(1) A reference method based on appendix F and designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter, or

(2) An equivalent method designated in accordance with part 53 of this chapter.

(d) The standards are attained when the annual arithmetic mean concentration in a calendar year is less than or equal to 0.053 ppm, rounded to three decimal places (fractional parts equal to or greater than 0.0005 ppm must be rounded up). To demonstrate attainment, an annual mean must be based upon hourly data that are at least 75 percent complete or upon data derived from manual methods that are at least 75 percent complete for the scheduled sampling days in each calendar quarter.

[50 FR 25544, June 19, 1985]

§50.12 National primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for lead.

National primary and secondary ambient air quality standards for lead and its compounds, measured as elemental lead by a reference method based on appendix G to this part, or by an equivalent method, are: 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter, maximum arithmetic mean averaged over a calendar quarter. (Secs. 109, 301(a) Clean Air Act as amended (42 U.S.C. 7409, 7601(a)))

[43 FR 46258, Oct. 5, 1978]

APPENDIX A TO PART 50-REFERENCE
METHOD FOR THE DETERMINATION OF
SULFUR DIOXIDE IN THE ATMOS-
PHERE (PARAROSANILINE METHOD)
1.0 Applicability.

1.1 This method provides a measurement of the concentration of sulfur dioxide (SO2) in ambient air for determining compliance with the primary and secondary national ambient air quality standards for sulfur oxides (sulfur dioxide) as specified in §50.4 and §50.5 of this chapter. The method is applicable to the measurement of ambient SO2 concentrations using sampling periods ranging from 30 minutes to 24 hours. Additional quality assurance procedures and guidance are provided in part 58, appendixes A and B, of this chapter and in references 1 and 2.

2.0 Principle.

2.1 A measured volume of air is bubbled through a solution of 0.04 M potassium tetrachloromercurate (TCM). The SO2 present in the air stream reacts with the TCM solution to form a stable monochlorosulfonatomercurate(3) complex. Once formed, this complex resists air oxidation(4,

5) and is stable in the presence of strong oxidants such as ozone and oxides of nitrogen. During subsequent analysis, the complex is reacted with acid-bleached pararosaniline dye and formaldehyde to form an intensely colored pararosaniline methyl sulfonic acid.(6) The optical density of this species is determined spectrophotometrically at 548 nm and is directly related to the amount of SO2 collected. The total volume of air sampled, corrected to EPA reference conditions (25 °C, 760 mm Hg (101 kPa]), is determined from the measured flow rate and the sampling time. The concentration of SO2 in the ambient air is computed and expressed in micrograms per standard cubic meter (μg/std m3).

3.0 Range.

3.1 The lower limit of detection of SO2 in 10 mL of TCM is 0.75 μg (based on collaborative test results).(7) This represents a concentration of 25 μg SO2/m3 (0.01 ppm) in an air sample of 30 standard liters (short-term sampling) and a concentration of 13 μg SO2/m3 (0.005 ppm) in an air sample of 288 standard liters (long-term sampling). Concentrations less than 25 μg SO2/m3 can be measured by sampling larger volumes of ambient air; however, the collection efficiency falls off rapidly at low concentrations.(8, 9) Beer's law is adhered to up to 34 μg of SO2 in 25 mL of final solution. This upper limit of the analysis range represents a concentration of 1,130 μg SO2/m3 (0.43 ppm) in an air sample of 30 standard liters and a concentration of 590 μg SO2/m3 (0.23 ppm) in an air sample of 288 standard liters. Higher concentrations can be measured by collecting a smaller volume of air, by increasing the volume of absorbing solution, or by diluting a suitable portion of the collected sample with absorbing solution prior to analysis.

4.0 Interferences.

4.1 The effects of the principal potential interferences have been minimized or eliminated in the following manner: Nitrogen oxides by the addition of sulfamic acid,(10, 11) heavy metals by the addition of ethylenediamine tetracetic acid disodium salt (EDTA) and phosphoric acid,(10, 12) and ozone by time delay.(10) Up to 60 μg Fe (III), 22 μg V (V), 10 μg Cu (II), 10 μg Mn (II), and 10 μg Cr (III) in 10 mL absorbing reagent can be tolerated in the procedure.(10) No significant interference has been encountered with 2.3 μg NH3.(13)

5.0 Precision and Accuracy.

5.1 The precision of the analysis is 4.6 percent (at the 95 percent confidence level) based on the analysis of standard sulfite samples.(10)

5.2 Collaborative test results (14) based on the analysis of synthetic test atmospheres (SO2 in scrubbed air) using the 24-hour sampling procedure and the sulfite-TCM calibration procedure show that:

The replication error varies linearly with concentration from £2.5 μg/m3 at concentrations of 100 μg/m3 to 17 μg/m3 at concentrations of 400 μg/m3.

• The day-to-day variability within an individual laboratory (repeatability) varies linearly with concentration from ±18.1 μg/ m3 at levels of 100 μg/m3 to 150.9 μg/m3 at levels of 400 μg/m3.

• The day-to-day variability between two or more laboratories (reproducibility) varies linearly with concentration from ±36.9 μg/ m3 at levels of 100 μg/m3 to ±103.5 μ g/m3 at levels of 400 μg/m3.

• The method has a concentration-dependent bias, which becomes significant at the 95 percent confidence level at the high concentration level. Observed values tend to be lower than the expected SO2 concentration level.

6.0 Stability.

6.1 By sampling in a controlled temperature environment of 15°+10 °C, greater than 98.9 percent of the SO-TCM complex is retained at the completion of sampling. (15) If kept at 5 °C following the completion of sampling, the collected sample has been found to be stable for up to 30 days.(10) The presence of EDTA enhances the stability of SO2 in the TCM solution and the rate of decay is independent of the concentration of SO2.(16) 7.0 Apparatus.

7.1 Sampling.

7.1.1 Sample probe: A sample probe meeting the requirements of section 7 of 40 CFR part 58, appendix E (Teflon® or glass with residence time less than 20 sec.) is used to transport ambient air to the sampling train location. The end of the probe should be designed or oriented to preclude the sampling of precipitation, large particles, etc. A suitable probe can be constructed from Teflon® tubing connected to an inverted funnel.

7.1.2 Absorber-short-term sampling: An all glass midget impinger having a solution capacity of 30 mL and a stem clearance of 4+1 mm from the bottom of the vessel is used for sampling periods of 30 minutes and 1 hour (or any period considerably less than 24 hours). Such an impinger is shown in Figure 1. These impingers are commercially available from distributors such as Ace Glass, Incorporated. 7.1.3 Absorber-24-hour sampling: A polypropylene tube 32 mm in diameter and 164 mm long (available from Bel Art Products, Pequammock, NJ) is used as the absorber. The cap of the absorber must be a polypropylene cap with two ports (rubber stoppers are unacceptable because the absorbing reagent can react with the stopper to yield erroneously high SO2 concentrations). A glass impinger stem, 6 mm in diameter and 158 mm long, is inserted into one port of the absorber cap. The tip of the stem is tapered to a small diameter orifice (0.4±0.1 mm) such that a No. 79 jeweler's drill bit will pass through the opening but a No. 78 drill bit

will not. Clearance from the bottom of the absorber to the tip of the stem must be 6+2 mm. Glass stems can be fabricated by any reputable glass blower or can be obtained from a scientific supply firm. Upon receipt, the orifice test should be performed to verify the orifice size. The 50 mL volume level should be permanently marked on the absorber. The assembled absorber is shown in Figure 2.

7.1.4 Moisture trap: A moisture trap constructed of a glass trap as shown in Figure 1 or a polypropylene tube as shown in Figure 2 is placed between the absorber tube and flow control device to prevent entrained liq

uid from reaching the flow control device. The tube is packed with indicating silica gel as shown in Figure 2. Glass wool may be substituted for silica gel when collecting shortterm samples (1 hour or less) as shown in Figure 1, or for long term (24 hour) samples if flow changes are not routinely encountered.

7.1.5 Cap seals: The absorber and moisture trap caps must seal securely to prevent leaks during use. Heat-shrink material as shown in Figure 2 can be used to retain the cap seals if there is any chance of the caps coming loose during sampling, shipment, or storage.

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