Measurements · Particulate Matter
Black Carbon
Also known as BC, elemental carbon, aethalometer
Black carbon (soot) from combustion, measured by 880 nm optical absorption. A climate forcer and a marker of traffic and biomass-burning exposure.
What it is
What is black carbon?
Black carbon is the sooty, strongly light-absorbing fraction of fine particulate matter produced by the incomplete combustion of fuels. It is not a gas but the near-pure carbon core of soot, the blackest component of PM2.5, emitted by diesel engines, biomass and coal burning, wildfires, shipping, and industrial flaring. Because it forms only when something burns, black carbon is the most specific tracer available for combustion-source particulate. Where PM2.5 lumps every fine particle together, black carbon isolates the portion that came from burning fuel, which makes it useful for apportioning the traffic and combustion share of air pollution.
It is also a potent short-lived climate forcer, absorbing sunlight and warming the atmosphere, so it is tracked for climate as well as health reasons.
Health and operational effects
Black carbon is a component of PM2.5 and shares that fraction's ability to penetrate deep into the lungs, but it is of particular interest because it travels with the toxic and carcinogenic compounds condensed onto soot and because it so reliably marks combustion. Epidemiological studies use it as an indicator of traffic-related air pollution, whose health effects (cardiovascular and respiratory disease) track combustion exposure more closely than total particle mass does. Reducing black carbon therefore yields a double benefit, cutting both a health-relevant pollutant and a climate forcer.
For cities, ports, and researchers, black carbon separates combustion sources from wind-blown dust in a way that a PM2.5 figure alone cannot.
How it is measured
How Black Carbon Is Measured
Aethalometers are the workhorse instrument: they draw air through a filter and measure the attenuation of light through the collected particles, and by using several wavelengths they can help separate fossil-fuel "black" carbon from biomass-burning "brown" carbon. Other optical-absorption methods, including photoacoustic instruments, measure the light absorbed by the particles directly rather than on a filter. All exploit the defining property of black carbon, that it absorbs light strongly across the spectrum, and report in real time, typically in ng/m³.
An instrument on Thiamis1
A third-party instrument connected to a Thiamis gateway, reporting into the same Environet account.
Placing black carbon monitoring
For traffic and combustion studies, place instruments at the roadside or site boundary at breathing height, with the intake clear of obstructions, and record wind speed and direction so concentrations can be tied to traffic and sources. Siting black carbon alongside a PM2.5 monitor is especially useful, because the ratio of the two reveals how much of the fine particulate is combustion-derived. Near ports, depots, and industry, position instruments downwind of the suspected source.
Every device and option that measures Black Carbon 1
| Device / option | Type | Base platform | Measures |
|---|---|---|---|
 AethLabs · MA200, MA300, MA350… | Specialty Air Analyzers | Thiamis |
Where it is monitored
Solutions That Monitor Black Carbon
Each one links to the solution page showing what that industry measures it for.
Wildfire Air Monitoring
Core parameterBlack carbon is the sooty, light-absorbing core of combustion smoke, and it is a sensitive tracer that distinguishes wildfire and biomass smoke from other particulate sources.
Outdoor Monitoring
Often addedContinuous outdoor air quality networks that sit alongside reference monitors
Related
More in Particulate Matter
Questions
Black Carbon FAQ
How is black carbon different from PM2.5?
Black carbon is a specific component of PM2.5, not a separate size fraction: it is the pure-carbon soot within the fine particle mass. PM2.5 counts all fine particles regardless of origin, whereas black carbon counts only those from combustion. Measuring both shows what share of the fine particulate came from burning fuel.
Why measure black carbon at all?
Because it is the most specific marker of combustion sources such as traffic and diesel, it lets you distinguish soot from wind-blown dust that a PM2.5 reading cannot separate. It also correlates closely with the health effects of traffic-related air pollution and is a significant climate forcer. That combination makes it useful for both air-quality management and climate work.
What is an aethalometer?
An aethalometer is the standard black carbon instrument. It continuously draws air through a filter and measures how much light the collected particles absorb, converting that absorption into a black carbon concentration, often at several wavelengths to distinguish fossil-fuel from biomass sources. It gives a real-time reading rather than a laboratory result.
How do I monitor black carbon?
Black carbon is a specialist measurement, so it is logged by connecting an external aethalometer or optical-absorption analyzer to a Thiamis gateway. Pairing that with the Aethair family's built-in PM2.5 lets you express black carbon as a fraction of the fine particulate and separate combustion from dust. Use the configurator to combine black carbon with PM2.5 and the criteria pollutants for a source-apportionment station.
Monitor Black Carbon on the Record
Schedule a callConfigure Black Carbon Monitoring All parameters
A 30-minute call: you tell us about your application, then we demo the solution for it.