Since September 19, 2021, La Palma, which belongs to the Canary Islands, Spain, has experienced an unprecedented volcanic eruption in 50 years. Dr. Maximilian Weiß, CEO of Palas® GmbH, responded quickly. When he saw the news, he immediately formed a Palas® expert team and flew them over from the headquarters in Karlsruhe, Germany, to the hard-hit Spanish island. Soon after their arrival, the Germans installed ten AQ Guard Smart fine dust monitoring systems. Thanks to these installations, the Spanish authorities gained accurate data about the current air quality. Based on their better understanding of the situation, they were able to take appropriate actions. It is not the first time that Palas® supports the authorities in a volcanic eruption.
The volcanic eruption has a severe impact
According to statistics, since the volcano’s eruption, the lava flow has destroyed more than 742 hectares of land and destroyed nearly 2,000 buildings on La Palma. About 7,000 people were evacuated from the island. Volcanic ashes cover a large area, and the volcanic ash column is several kilometers high. Most of the areas covered by lava are rural and farmland. Nearly 60 kilometers of roads were also destroyed.
As an expert in the aerosol monitoring industry, Palas® not only has extensive experience in monitoring urban fine dust pollution but is also familiar with air quality monitoring after incidents like a volcanic eruption. At present, many Palas® instruments have been used in Iceland with many volcanic landforms to monitor the local air quality. Facing this sudden disaster, Dr. Maximilian Weiß, CEO of Palas® GmbH, said, “Whether it is for civil defense reasons or scientific research purposes, the current air quality of La Palma is something we must measure.”
Palas® employees arrive at the local area to install the equipment
During the volcanic eruption and the danger on the ground, the toxic gas in the air poses a severe threat to human health. Accurate air quality monitoring data can help protect people’s health and take necessary measures. After Palas® employees arrived in the local area, they immediately installed air quality meters in and around the dangerous places on the island. Affected by the harsh environment during the installation process, Palas® employees felt different degrees of itching in their throats and burning eyes. What is gratifying is that the installation of AQ Guard Smart is progressing smoothly, and it finally took two days to complete the installation of all the equipment. Palas® equipment can now be used to better assess the air quality on the island.
To support local authorities, Palas® installed 10 AQ Guard Smart fine dust monitoring on the island to measure dust levels near volcanic eruptions. After the measurement, Palas® will report the particle size distribution of the ashes to local scientists. Accurate measurement data will help to obtain important information about volcanic eruption activity.
AQ Guard Smart is a robust aerosol spectrometer for outdoor air. It uses the measurement principle of optical scattered light measurement on single particles based on the technology of the EN 16450 certified Fidas® 200. It can measure PM1, PM2.5, PM4, and PM10 at the same time and can also provide 175nm-18μm particle size distribution and number concentration information. It offers more references for research and regulatory authorities. A bi-directional connection via standardized protocols, such as ASCII or direct transmission via UDP protocol, is easy to realize. For self-sufficient operation, the system can be operated via an external battery with or without solar support. The device can be equipped with a weather station to understand better and interpret fine dust immissions and their origin. Sensors for recording temperature, humidity, and pressure are integrated as standard. As with all Palas® systems for fine dust measurements, AQ Guard Smart can run stably for a long time and realize on-site calibration through standard monodisperse particles.
AQ Guard Smart
Advantages:
·    Technology based on the certified Fidas® 200 series (EN16450 and MCERTS)
·    Easy and fast installation
·    Configuration via Wi-Fi hotspot, remote, external touchpad
·    Communication via GPRS / 3G / 4G / Ethernet / Wi-Fi
·    Expandable with weather station / external battery / solar
·    Simultaneous measurement of Cn, PM1, PM5, PM4, PM10 with high temporal resolution
·    Particle measurement range from 0.175 – 20,000 nm up to 100 mg/m³ mass concentration or 20,000 particle/cm³ (single particle analysis)
·    Continuous, simultaneous real-time measurement in second-by-second resolution
·    Visualization of the measured data in real time and their course
·    Data and parameters can be subsequently evaluated with Palas® PDAnalyze software
·    Real-time transfer of measured data without post-processing or adjustment
Applications：
·    Rodas, pails, ports
·    Smart city projects
·    Open pit mining, landfills
·    Construction sites: Roads, railroads, demolition sites
·    Industry: Production processes, bulk material handling (mixing, discharge, storage, packaging, etc.), fenceline monitoring
·    Inner city