2006 Annual Report 1.What major problem or issue is being resolved and how are you resolving it (summarize project aims and objectives)? How serious is the problem? Why does it matter? This research contributes to National Program 206 - Manure & Byproduct Utilization and National Program 203 - Air Quality. Measurement of atmospheric constituents and the coupling of these concentrations into dispersion models is a difficult task. Traditional approaches have used a modified form the Gaussian dispersion model; however, this approach is not applicable to situations typical of agricultural operations. The reasons for these problems are the extremely inhomogeneous nature of the surface and the variability in the emission rates. If improvements are to be made in both the measurement and estimation of dispersion from a source for agricultural operations then improvements need to be made in the ability to accurately measure different gases and particulates in the atmosphere. Improvements in the estimation of turbulent transfer coefficients typical of agricultural settings need to be evaluated. Both of these problems are complex and have not been adequately addressed. Increasing our ability to both measure concentrations and predict dispersion would enhance our understanding of the impact of agricultural operations on air quality. These improvements would be used to provide assessments of the impact of different operations and be able to provide accurate assessments of the impact of management practices that enhance air quality. 2.List by year the currently approved milestones (indicators of research progress) 1. Lidar will be deployed around a swine facility to validate the findings collected from the 2005 experiment. Pending the completion of this study we will expand to other livestock species, e.g, dairies. This milestone has been completed with deployment of the unit around a swine production and dairy facility 2. The dispersion estimates derived from the particulate measurements will be coupled with dispersion models and verified with measurements of particulate load captured downwind of a facility using mass collection techniques. This milestone has been completed with the development of methods to estimate the particulate load by size fraction. 3. A comparison will be made of the estimates of particulate load derived from Lidar with mass capture techniques placed around the facility. This milestone has been addressed with the development of methods to estimate the particulate load and the downwind dispersion of the particulate load. 4. A comparison of different micrometeorological models will be made using the turbulence data collected around the livestock facility experiment in 2005. This milestone has been addressed through a detailed analysis of the turbulent structure around a swine production facility. 4a.List the single most significant research accomplishment during FY 2006. The National Program Components relating to this research are Particulate Emissions, Ammonia Emissions, and Pesticides. The Aglite lidar uses measurements of three wavelengths of scattered light to provide the particulate size distribution function and concentration density. Aglite can be rapidly scanned around the measured facility, producing 3-D images of size density, utilizing the different wavelengths to determine particle size fraction. Aglite wavelengths are at 1.064, 0.532, and 0.355 micrometer. The micropulse laser (10 KHz) and optical filters are used to adjust transmitted power to that required for the measurements at hand, providing eye safe operation at ranges from 500 m to 15 km. The system uses scan mirror pointing and can be rapidly scanned to specific locations or in scan patterns. Aglite is generator powered and can be moved with relative ease around a facility to compensate for major changes in weather conditions. An extended series of Lidar observations were conducted during three week field campaign. Both day and night time measurements were conducted to capture the dynamics of particulate flux emission from the production facility, and to explore the Whole Facility Flux measurement technique. The local climate was typically characterized by clear skies, and winds were generally mild at 0-3 m/s, changing direction from west to south during the study period. Typical lidar scan patterns include vertical scans between barns and on any side of the barns and sensor trailer, horizontal scans above the barns at any chosen elevation, stationary time series scans of particulate emission in close proximity to the in-situ instrumentation, and any combination of vertical and horizontal scans to capture and monitor 3D distribution and variation of the particulate emission. Depending on the prevailing wind conditions, the measured profiles of particulate emission varied significantly from day to day and occasionally even hour to hour. The capability of the system to develop 2-D-spatial and temporal distributions of regulated size fraction concentrations illustrates the capability of the system to determine particulate mass concentration distribution. In the plume section, the PMfine fraction has almost twice the volume concentration as the PMcoarse (PM10 – PM2.5) sample. All of the particulates in the facility plume are moving together, showing their dependence on the local turbulent structure. These results are encouraging because they provide the first example of the dynamics of particulate movement and the resolution of different size fractions. 4b.List other significant research accomplishment(s), if any. This project has focused on the development of the lidar and measurements of gases and turbulence as a single focus and the application to livestock production facilities. 5.Describe the major accomplishments to date and their predicted or actual impact. The National Program Components relating to this research are Particulate Emissions, Ammonia Emissions, and Pesticides. The major accomplishment has been the development and testing of the portable lidar system and the application to be able to quantify the size fraction of particulates within the plume. This approach will provide a completely new technique to quantify the plume dynamics and the particulate or gaseous loads carried within the plume. This type of measurement system will allow for more accurate measurement of the loads downwind of livestock facilities that are not possible with other techniques. This type of approach coupled with standard measurement methods will enhance our understanding of air flow and transport. This technique may be the only method capable of providing quantitative information on air quality in livestock facilities or agricultural operations that rely on air movement patterns rather than mechanical fans as the transport mechanism. 7.List your most important publications in the popular press and presentations to organizations and articles written about your work. (NOTE: List your peer reviewed publications below). Gail E. Bingham, Jerry L. Hatfield, John H. Prueger, Thomas D. Wilkerson, Vladimir V. Zavyalov, Richard L. Pfeiffer, Larry Hipps, Randy Martin, Phil Silva, W. Eichinger. 2006. An Integrated Approach to Measuring Emissions from Confined Animal Feeding Operations at the Whole Facility Scale. In Aneja, V.P., W.H. Schlesinger, R. Knighton, G. Jennings, D. Niyogi, W. Gilliam, and C.S. Duke (eds.) Proceedings Workshop on Agricultural Air Quality: State of the Science. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. p. 88-89.