Current Challenges in Air Sampling of Semivolatile Organic Contaminants: Sampling Artifacts and Their Influence on Data Comparability

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Authors

MELYMUK Lisa Emily BOHLIN Sara Pernilla SÁŇKA Ondřej POZO Karla Andrea KLÁNOVÁ Jana

Year of publication 2014
Type Article in Periodical
Magazine / Source ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Science

Citation
Web http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/es502164r
Doi http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es502164r
Field Air pollution and control
Keywords POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC-HYDROCARBONS; POLYBROMINATED DIPHENYL ETHERS; BROMINATED FLAME RETARDANTS; POLYURETHANE FOAM DISK; DIFFUSION DENUDER SAMPLERS; MASS SIZE DISTRIBUTIONS; HENRYS LAW CONSTANTS; POLYCHLORINATED-BIPHENYLS; HIGH-VOLUME; PARTICULATE MATTER
Description With current science and policy needs, more attention is being given to expanding and improving air sampling of semivolatile organic contaminants (SVOCs). However, a wide range of techniques and configurations are currently used (active and passive samplers, different deployment times, different sorbents, etc.) and as the SVOC community looks to assess air measurements on a global scale, questions of comparability arise. We review current air sampling techniques, with a focus on sampling artifacts that can lead to uncertainties or biases in reported concentrations, in particular breakthrough, degradation, meteorological influences, and assumptions regarding passive sampling. From this assessment, we estimate the bias introduced for SVOC concentrations from all factors. Due to the effects of breakthrough, degradation, particle fractions and sampler uptake periods, some current passive and active sampler configurations may underestimate certain SVOCs by 30-95%. We then recommend future study design, appropriateness of sampler types for different study goals, and finally, how the SVOC community should move forward in both research and monitoring to best achieve comparability and consistency in air measurements.
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