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Related Experiment Videos

Measuring visual opacity using digital imaging technology.

Michael J McFarland1, Spencer H Terry, Michael J Calidonna

  • 1Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA.

Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association (1995)
|April 6, 2004
PubMed
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The Digital Opacity Compliance System (DOCS) offers a technically sound and cost-effective alternative to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Reference Method 9 for measuring visible emissions. DOCS performs comparably to Method 9 under clear skies and may be more accurate in specific challenging conditions.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental science
  • Atmospheric monitoring
  • Compliance technology

Background:

  • The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Reference Method 9 (Method 9) is the standard for verifying facility compliance with visible opacity standards.
  • Method 9 is favored for its flexibility and low cost.
  • There is a need for technically defensible and economically competitive alternatives to Method 9.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the Digital Opacity Compliance System (DOCS) as an alternative to Method 9.
  • To assess the technical defensibility and economic competitiveness of DOCS.
  • To compare the accuracy of DOCS and Method 9 under various conditions.

Main Methods:

  • Field application of DOCS at EPA-approved Method 9 smoke schools.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Comparison of DOCS opacity measurements with Method 9 under clear and overcast sky conditions.
  • Application of hypothesis testing to analyze smoke school data.

    • Main Results:

    • Under clear sky conditions, DOCS consistently met the opacity error rate established under Method 9.
    • Hypothesis testing confirmed DOCS is equivalent to Method 9 under clear skies.
    • Human observers appeared more accurate than DOCS under overcast skies, but DOCS may be more accurate when only sky is used as a background.

    Conclusions:

    • DOCS is a technically defensible and economically competitive alternative to Method 9.
    • DOCS demonstrates equivalence to Method 9 under clear sky conditions.
    • DOCS shows potential for improved accuracy in specific scenarios where Method 9 relies on sky as a background.