Lightweight, Low-Power Cascade Impactor for Aircraft Sampling

Particle Size Distributions are fundamental to any study of aerosols. If chemical species in the aerosol size ranges are to be determined, the cascade impactor is the instrument of choice. Research quality cascade impactors are commercially available but are not optimized for low weight and low power use. Aircraft-mounted cascade impactors to collect samples for size-resolved chemical distributions must be light weight and low pressure drop. They must also be capable of collecting multiple samples between servicing and be sufficiently robust to perform under aircraft sampling conditions.The work proposed here is the design of three state-of-the-art cascade impactors whose performance is limited by the maximum weight and power use associated with aircraft sampling capable of multiple samples during a single flight.