Terrestrial solar spectral ultraviolet measurements at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Daryl R. Myers; Theodore W. Cannon; John D. Webb

doi:10.1117/12.140864

22 January 1993 Terrestrial solar spectral ultraviolet measurements at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Daryl R. Myers, Theodore W. Cannon, John D. Webb

Proceedings Volume 1764, Ultraviolet Technology IV; (1993) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.140864
Event: San Diego '92, 1992, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

At the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), ongoing projects investigate the use of ultraviolet (UV) energy as it applies to aqueous toxic waste purification, material degradation, and terrestrial spectral solar irradiance model development. These projects require knowledge of the UV spectral distribution of natural terrestrial sunlight and artificial sources rich in UV radiation. NREL has modified instrumentation to measure terrestrial solar spectral distributions from 250 to 400 nanometers (nm) at 1 nm intervals. It uses a band width of 2 nm, and a small double monochromator and photomultiplier (1P28) detector. The modified instrument measures artificial sources in the laboratory with up to 1000 times the intensity of natural solar UV radiation. This is done using coupled multiple integrating spheres and by limiting apertures to provide appropriate signal levels. A newly acquired UV spectroradiometer with good wavelength accuracy (0.3 nm) is used to calibrate broad-band solar UV monitoring detectors outdoors and against laboratory standards. Both the metrology and research applications of these UV spectral measurements require detailed uncertainty analyses, which show that uncertainty in the measurements is a strong function of wavelength below 350 nm. The major contributors to the uncertainty are wavelength drive accuracy, passband, detector noise, and calibration source uncertainty.

Citation Download Citation

Daryl R. Myers, Theodore W. Cannon, and John D. Webb "Terrestrial solar spectral ultraviolet measurements at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory", Proc. SPIE 1764, Ultraviolet Technology IV, (22 January 1993); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.140864

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available