Development and validation of inexpensive, automated, dynamic flux chambers

We developed and validated an automated, inexpensive, and continuous multiple-species gas-flux monitoring system that can provide data for a variety of relevant atmospheric pollutants, including O3, CO2, and NOx. Validation consisted of conducting concurrent gas-phase dry-deposition experiments, using both dynamic flux chambers and an eddy-covariance system, in a grassy clearing in the Duke Forest (Chapel Hill, NC). Experiments were carried out in June and September under a variety of meteorological conditions. Ozone-deposition measurements from the two methods matched very well (4–10% difference in mean flux rate) when the leaf-area index (LAI) inside the chambers was representative of the average LAI in the field. The dynamic flux chambers can be considered an accurate measurement system under these conditions.