News — Carbon Dioxide (CO2)

For years, scientists believed that mosquitoes were able to find us by zeroing in on the carbon dioxide in our breath. However, new research has shown that it is a combination of CO2, human odor and heat that lead the pesky insects to us. A team of researchers led by Conor McMeniman at the Laboratory of Neurogenetics and Behavior, Rockefeller University, New York, were able to mutate a gene in the CO2 receptor in Aedes aegypti, a common type of mosquito which spreads yellow fever. The mutated insects were not able to detect or respond to CO2. But they found...

A customer recently wrote us and asked, "I am testing a SenseAir K-30 CO2 Sensor next to a desktop CO2 meter. The K-30 is reading 778ppm, while the desktop meter shows 846ppm. Which one is correct?" The simple answer is that they are both correct! Yes, they are different, but both sensors are working within their rated accuracy. What does that mean? How is accuracy defined? The accuracy of a CO2 sensor is defined as how close the measurement is to a reference gas, expressed as either a ± (plus-minus) value in parts-per-million (ppm) or as a percentage (%) of...

For years, agriculturalists have used carbon dioxide to kill insects in sealed vegetable, grain and fruit storage containers. The benefits are obvious: Because CO2 is not a chemical insecticide, it does not leach into the food, making it totally safe for human consumption. But does that mean CO2 can be used to fumigate live plants? While the evidence says “yes”, it isn’t an easy solution. The first problem with using CO2 to fumigate is that to be effective, the CO2 level must be maintained above 40% over 7-15 days in order to kill every type of insect. For example, in...

Poultry is the most-consumed meat in both the United States and worldwide. Much of this expansion is due to the growth of large-scale production methods capable of delivering birds – especially chicken - to consumers at relatively low prices. Bulk carbon dioxide has become an integral part of the booming poultry industry. In fact, at virtually every stage of a chicken's life-cycle, CO2 is used to maximize production. CO2Meter has had the opportunity to work with many producers in the industry, and we’ve developed an understanding of how our products are used. • It starts with egg incubation. Using CO2...