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Abstract
A new method for solving the theoretical rate of coincidence in a condensation particle counter (CPC) using the Lambert W function is described. The method, based on a Poisson process, corrects for the inherent effects of coincidence in particle counters, and provides an accurately determined true counting rate. Using an experimentally determined dead time for MSP Model 1110 and TSI Model 3760A CPCs, the method provided correction of up to 99% of the maximum count rate allowed by this method, with an average discrepancy of less than 4% when compared with a reference number concentration standard. The new coincidence correction method can be applied to any CPC with a known per-event dead time, extending its upper concentration measuring range by nearly one order of magnitude.
Copyright 2013 American Association for Aerosol Research
Acknowledgments
[Supplementary materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Aerosol Science and Technology to view the free supplementary files.]
Notes
The Lambert W function can be found in popular commercially available computational software packages such as Matlab, Mathematica, and Octave. Included in the online supplemental information is an Excel macro for the Lambert W function.