Collection of atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using polyurethane foam plugs

Abstract

A high volume air sampling method using polyurethane foam plugs (PUFPs) was applied to collect atmospheric polycyclic hydrocarbons (PAHs) passing through a glass fiber filter (GF). Air was pullcd at (0.75~0.8)m3/min for 24 hours through a GF (20.3×25.4 cm) and then through two PUFPs (density 0.021 g/cm3, 10 cm diameter×5cm). The GF was extracted with 100 ml cyclohexane in a Soxhlet extractor for 6 hours and the PUFPs with 300 ml cyclohexane. The PAH in the each extract was extracted with dimethylsulfoxide and cleaned up by a silica gel column chromatography, and determined by gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector. Recovery test was carried out as follows. A GF (2 cm diameter) and two PUFPs (2.3 cm diameter) were placed into a glass tube (2 cm diameter) in series and 25 μg of each PAH {phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo (a) fluorene, chrysene, benzo(a)pyrene, o-phenylenepyrene, benzo(ghi)perylene} was put on the GF, and clean air was passed through the tube at 41 1/min for 24 hours. The PAHs except phenanthrene moving from away the GF were completely trapped on the first PUFP and the PAHs were not detected on the second PUFP. Recoveries of PAHs except phenanthrene were more than 90% and that of phenanthrene was 79.2%. Above method was applied to the determination of trapping efficiencies of GF for PAHs in the ambient air at (22.9~32.4)°C. The efficiencies of phenanthrene + anthracene, fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo(a) fluorene + benzo(b)fluorene, chrysene + benzo(a) anthracene + triphenylene, benzo(a)pyrene + benzo (e) pyrene, o-phenylenepyrene, benzo(ghi)perylene + anthanthrene were 1.1%, 3.7%, 5.1%, 5.3%, 43.4%, 94.6%, 100%, 100%, respectively. The above results indicate that PAHs with less than 4 ring systems are not completely trapped on GF, and PUFPs should be charged with behind the GF to trap the PAHs efficiently. © 1978, The Japan Society for Analytical Chemistry. All rights reserved.