Shower Type Equilibrator

Sea water is supplied at a flow rate of 5-10 L min^-1. Gas flow design is a stopped flow system with two circulation paths - one through the analysis cell which included gas dryers and filters, and another bypass path to pre-equilibrate the gas from the equilibrator headspace. During the hourly cycle, four standard gases pass through the analysis path for each 5 minutes and are measured for each 1 minute after the pump is turned off. Atmospheric air passes through the analysis path for 19 min followed by 1 minute of analysis, and then gas from the equilibrator headspace passes through for 15 minutes before 1 minute of analysis (totally 60 minutes cycle). During the period that the atmospheric measurements are made, gas from the equilibrator headspace circulates in the bypass loop as a pre-equilibration step before entering the analysis path.

In June 1996 (before 12E) the equilibrator for this system was moved. It had been located behind the analytical system, and the water level and exhaust flow were difficult to monitor. The change to a stainless steel supply line in December 1996 (before 15W) helped to keep the equilibrator free of rust. These two changes made it easier to monitor the water level and to adjust the gas and water flows to ensure proper operation of the equilibrator.