Sampling for Total Volatile Organic Hydrocarbons

[Guest guest]

Does anyone know if there exist a standard method of sampling for Total Volatile

Organic Hydrocarbons? If so, what is it?

Thanks in advance.

Bob

[Guest guest]

I'd like to follow-up on my question below.

I got a few responses in reference to using sampling tubes with a pump and I

appreciate these responses very much. Does anyone know of a good direct reading

method that gives accurate results. I've used a photo ionization detector (PID)

in the office environment but it gave me a zero reading. I would have expected

a level higher than zero. Is this typical with a PID?

Thanks

Bob

> Sampling for Total Volatile Organic Hydrocarbons

>

> Does anyone know if there exist a standard method of sampling for Total

Volatile Organic Hydrocarbons? If so, what is it?

>

> Thanks in advance.

> Bob

[Guest guest]

Dear Mr. :

IMHO a PID is not capable of providing an assessment of Total VOCs. What it is,

is a generalized VOC detector. I therefore feel that anyone who makes claims

that their PID can provide a value for TVOC to be suspect in either their

integrity, information level or both.

Sincerely,

W. Bearg, PE, CIH

Consultant in IEQ

Concord, MA 01742

I'd like to follow-up on my question below.

I got a few responses in reference to using sampling tubes with a pump and I appreciate these responses very much. Does anyone know of a good direct reading method that gives accurate results. I've used a photo ionization detector (PID) in the office environment but it gave me a zero reading. I would have expected a level higher than zero. Is this typical with a PID?

Thanks

Bob

> Sampling for Total Volatile Organic Hydrocarbons

>

> Does anyone know if there exist a standard method of sampling for Total Volatile Organic Hydrocarbons? If so, what is it?

>

> Thanks in advance.

> Bob

FAIR USE NOTICE:

This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

[Guest guest]

Photo Ionization Detectors, as well as Flame Ionization Detectors,

are used for generalized or relative VOC measurements. They never

provide accurate measurements as would be useful in an IAQ

investigation. They might be useful for confirmation of the

presence or relative levels of VOCs or to aid in tracing the source

of a pollutant in an indoor environment. Temperature, humidity, and

other factors affect the readings to a large degree. Anything that

affects the rate of evaporation/volatilization will affect the

readings and results will vary depending on the specific VOC that is

present. I've used PIDs extensively in soil sample selection and

contaminant delineation and have found them unreliable for accurate

measurements and often misleading. Different PIDs, in fact, will

provide different results, even when calibrated by the same source.

Gavin A Kitchens

>

> I'd like to follow-up on my question below.

>

> I got a few responses in reference to using sampling tubes with a

pump and I appreciate these responses very much. Does anyone know

of a good direct reading method that gives accurate results. I've

used a photo ionization detector (PID) in the office environment but

it gave me a zero reading. I would have expected a level higher

than zero. Is this typical with a PID?

>

> Thanks

> Bob