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By Bobby Vasquez

Chemists James Rhubottom, left, and Peter Chen examine locations for Mobile Ambient Air Monitoring Laboratory. When deciding on deployment sites, they consider weather conditions. Photo by Bobby Vasquez

From the inside of what looks like a modified ambulance, environmental investigator James Rhubottom sits behind a computer station that could be straight from Mission Control.

He longs for the day when he’s out of a job, Rhubottom said. And not because he’s lazy. Being out of a job means the Houston area has clean, quality air.

Until then, he is part of a team of chemists who patrol the area, measuring toxins in the air from a mobile air quality unit.

Through grant funds from the Houston Endowment and the mayor’s initiative to lower toxins in Houston’s air, Rhubottom and the Mobile Ambient Air Monitoring Laboratory study the area’s air.

“MAAML is an outreach of the mayor’s initiative allowing us to add services that the city has not previously had,” he said. “We go to various locations, take air samples and report if there are any potential problems.”

On board the mobile lab, Rhubottom samples and analyzes the air. (See Sorting it out box.)

The computerized system almost instantly detects and quantifies different organic compounds such as 1,3-butadiene and benzene at low detection levels.

MAAML also contains meteorological monitors for determining atmospheric conditions and a geographical positioning system that specifies sampling locations.

On location near the Goodyear plant on State Highway 225, Rhubottom and chemist Peter Chen quickly set up MAAML.

After using a hydraulic system to level the work place, they raised a 10-meter mast that houses a thermometer, a barometer for air pressure, a hygrometer for relative humidity, and a sonic anemometer for wind speed.

Once the mast was raised, Rhubottom and Chen calibrated the equipment and learned something was wrong. On a hot June day, the thermometer read minus 92 degrees.

“It’s kinda warm out there,” Rhubottom joked, wiping the sweat from his brow. With the help of a soldering iron, the two scientists rewired the system and corrected the problem.

“That’s just part of the job,” Rhubottom said as he climbed down from the top of the mobile lab. “You have to wear many hats when you are out here because we have to make MAAML as self-sufficient as possible.”

Rhubottom and the team of chemists must be familiar with the equipment and computer systems and know how to fix even the simplest problem.

“We learn to be resourceful out here,” he said.
Rhubottom estimates he spends about 30 percent of his time, which can include graveyard shifts, in the field with the mobile lab. The rest of the time is split between maintenance and reporting the findings.

MAAML will spend several hours in a location before moving to different areas around a central point, so that variables like wind direction and temperature are factored into their studies. After several hours, Rhubttom said the air in the area was fine.

Most parts of the city – particularly refineries and industrial businesses – keep their emissions within the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality standards, Rhubottom said.

“It really works out better for everyone when they follow TCEQ guidelines,” he said. “It keeps their employees healthy, their neighbors happy, and they avoid fines from the state.”

However, when emissions exceed standards, the city works with the offender to lower the emissions, Rhubottom said.

“Here, we are both proactive and reactive, and we have to be. If we can take steps in advance to improve air quality, then we don’t have to worry about it coming up. Then again, leaks happen. Nothing is perfect and equipment breaks down,” he said.

With the MAAML program, Houston’s air quality has changed for the better, he said. “Now, we can more precisely pinpoint the locations of emission events and show the companies the results.

“We also have a great community outreach program with various civic and school groups to show them what the city is doing, how we are actively working to improve Houston’s air quality and making them aware of air quality issues in general,” he said.

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