Light absorbing carbon (LAC), also referred to as black carbon (BC) or more colloquially as soot; is generated from the partial combustion of fossil fuels and biomass. The significant research interest in BC is largely due to its aerodynamic diameter well within the 2.5 μm size fraction (known as PM_2.5), as well as its abundance being a major constituent of atmospheric particulate matter, particularly in urban regions. Accurately measuring BC is crucial for researchers and regulators for identifying root causes, monitoring emission source concentrations and input into climate change models in order to identify approaches that can best mitigate its atmospheric abundance.

This paper presents results from recent studies using a BC research instrument developed by ANSTO, the Multi-wavelength Absorption Black carbon Instrument (MABI). The paper describes in detail the instrument design, function and interpretation of data from measurement of filters collected from various geographical locations in Australia and Asia. This instrument measures the light absorption of LAC particles deposited on filters at seven different wavelengths ranging from 405 to 1050 nm to estimate the LAC concentration of different particle diameters in order to differentiate between LAC from high temperature fossil fuel combustion (such as diesel vehicle engines) and biomass burning. Providing a powerful tool for identifying source contributions and determining LAC content of filters using quantitative analysis.

吸光碳（LAC），也称为黑碳（BC），俗称烟灰；由化石燃料和生物质的部分燃烧产生。对BC的重大研究兴趣很大程度上是由于其空气动力学直径恰好在2.5μm尺寸分数之内（称为PM _2.5），并且其丰度是大气颗粒物的主要成分，尤其是在城市地区。准确测量菌落浓度对于研究人员和监管者识别根本原因，监测排放源浓度和向气候变化模型中的输入，以找出最能减轻其大气丰度的方法至关重要。

本文介绍了使用ANSTO开发的BC研究仪器（多波长吸收黑碳仪器（MABI））的最新研究结果。本文详细描述了仪器的设计，功能以及对来自澳大利亚和亚洲不同地理位置的过滤器的测量数据的解释。该仪器测量沉积在滤光片上的LAC颗粒在405至1050 nm的七个不同波长下的吸光度，以估算不同粒径的LAC浓度，从而区分LAC与高温化石燃料燃烧（例如柴油车发动机）之间的区别。和生物质燃烧。提供了一个功能强大的工具，用于使用定量分析来识别源贡献并确定过滤器的LAC含量。