LI-COR proposes to develop a next-generation CO2/CH4/H2O analyzer that will offer an unprecedented combination of high precision and stability, making it the first high-performance gas analyzer suitable for long-term unattended operation. The instrument will be smaller, lighter, and far less expensive than competing technologies. LI-CORs approach exploits a proprietary, revolutionary design that overcomes the limitations of existing techniques and enables a sophisticated spectroscopic analysis strategy that is far more robust than competing approaches. The objective of Phase I is to prove feasibility of meeting NOAAs proposed specifications through demonstration of a laboratory prototype that achieves the precision requirements and demonstrates stability for one month (limited by the six month duration of Phase I and the time required to design, build and test the prototype). In Phase II we will more thoroughly characterize stability over 12 months.
