An innovative application of a commercially available double-sided adhesive for the collection of aerosols by impaction

We investigated a commercially available double-sided electrically conductive carbon adhesive for the collection of aerosols by impactors. This collection surface was found to be excellent for X-ray microanalysis since it does not contribute to the energy dispersive spectrum. X-ray microanalysis of this substrate showed it to contain only carbon and oxygen with carbon being the major component. The carbon substrate is ideal for backscatter electron microscopy because of maximal contrast differences between it and the collected noncarbonaceous particles. The characteristics of this substrate are advantageous for performing feature analysis and chemical characterization of aerosols by automated scanning electron microscopy