USGS-NWQL: O-3115: Purgeable Organic Compounds in Water

Summary
Analytes
Revision
Data and Sites

Official Method Name

Total Recoverable Purgeable Organic Compounds in Water by Purge and Trap Gas Chromatography with a Mass Spectrometer

Current Revision

1983

Media

WATER

Instrumentation

Gas Chromatography with Mass Spectrometry Detection

Method Subcategory

Organic

Method Source

USGS-NWQL

Citation

Methods for the Determination of Organic Substances in Water and Fluvial Sediments, Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations of the United States Geological Survey, Book 5, Chapter A3 Edited by R.L. Wershaw, M.J. Fishman, R.R Grabbe, and L.E. Lowe

Brief Method Summary

A water sample is purged with helium. The purgeable organic compounds are carried with helium and trapped on a porous polymer trap. The trapped compounds are thermally desorbed into the gas chromatograph. These compounds are separated by gas chromatography (GC) and detected by mass spectrometry (MS).

Scope and Application

This method is suitable for the determination of purgeable organic compounds in water and water suspended-sediment mixtures containing at least 3 mg/L of a reportable analyte.

Applicable Concentration Range

None given.

Interferences

(1) Contamination of samples, solvent, and carrier gases with target analytes (especially compounds common to environmental laboratories, like methylene chloride).
(2) Contamination of samples with sulfur (primarily present in base-neutral fractions).
(3) Septum bleed (compounds from the injection septum are analyzed with the sample).
(4) Column bleed (compounds from column coating break down, decreasing column efficiency).
(5) Ghost peaks (compounds adsorb strongly to the column and carry over to later runs).
(6) Coelution of species.
(7) Coextracted contaminants.

Quality Control Requirements

Not Included

Sample Handling

Collect samples in clean sample bottles that have been baked at 300 to 350^oC overnight. Fill the bottle so a meniscus forms at the mouth of the sample bottle. Cap the bottle so no headspace is present. Refrigerate samples at 4^oC until analysis. Special handling of samples, such as storage in a desiccator over activated charcoal, may be required to prevent contamination by common laboratory solvents.

Maximum Holding Time

Relative Cost

$201 to $400

Sample Preparation Methods

This method has 28 analytes associated with it.

Analyte	Detection Level	Bias	Precision
1,1,1-Trichloroethane(71-55-6) 1,1,1-Trichloroethane Baltana Chlorothene Ethane, 1,1,1-trichloro- Methyl chloroform TCEA	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane(79-34-5) 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane Acetylenetetrachloride Bonoform Cellon Ethane, 1,1,2,2-tetrachloro- sym-Tetrachloroethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
1,1,2-Trichloroethane(79-00-5) 1,1,2-Trichloroethane Ethane, 1,1,2-trichloro- Vinyltrichloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
1,1-Dichloroethane(75-34-3) 1,1-Dichloroethane Ethane, 1,1-dichloro- Ethylidene Chloride Ethylidene dichloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
1,1-Dichloroethene(75-35-4) 1,1-Dichloroethene 1,1-Dichloroethylene Ethene, 1,1-dichloro- Ethylene, 1,1-dichloro-, inhibited Vinylidene chloride Vinylidenechloride Vinylidine chloride asym-Dichloroethylene	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
1,2-Dichloroethane(107-06-2) 1,2-Dichloroethane EDC Ethane, 1,2-dichloro- Ethylene Dichlorinde Ethylene dichloride Glycol dichloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
1,2-Dichloropropane(78-87-5) 1,2-Dichloropropane Dichloropropane,alpha,beta- Nemex Propane, 1,2-dichloro- Propylene chloride Propylene dichloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
2-Chloroethylvinyl ether(110-75-8) (2-chloroethoxy)-Ethene 2-Chloroethoxyethene 2-Chloroethylvinyl ether Ethene, (2-chloroethoxy)- beta-Chloroethyl vinyl ether	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Benzene(71-43-2) Benzene Benzol Coal naptha Cyclohexatriene Phene Pyrobenzol	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Bromodichloromethane(75-27-4) Bromodichloromethane Dichlorobromomethane Dichloromonobromomethane Methane, bromodichloro- Monobromodichloromethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Bromoform(75-25-2) Bromoform Methane, tribromo- Methenyl tribromide Tribromomethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Bromomethane(74-83-9) Bromomethane Methane, bromo Methyl bromide Monobromomethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Carbon tetrachloride(56-23-5) Benzinoform Carbon tetrachloride Methane tetrachloride Methane, tetrachloro- Perchloromethane Tetrachloromethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Chlorobenzene(108-90-7) Benzene chloride Benzene, chloro- Chlorobenzene MCB Monochlorobenzene Phenyl chloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Chloroethane(75-00-3) Chlorethyl Chloridum Chloroethane Chloryl Ethane, chloro Ethyl chloride Hydrochloric ether Monochloroethane Muriatic ether	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Chloroform(67-66-3) Chloroform Methane, trichloro- Trichloroform Trichloromethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Chloromethane(74-87-3) Chloromethane Methane, chloro Methyl chloride Monochloromethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Dibromochloromethane(124-48-1) Chlorodibromomethane Dibromochloromethane Methane, dibromochloro-	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Ethylbenzene(100-41-4) Benzene, ethyl Ethyl benzene Ethylbenzene Ethylbenzol Phenylethane	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Methylene chloride(75-09-2) Dichloromethane Methane dichloride Methane, dichloro- Methylene bichloride Methylene chloride Methylene dichloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Tetrachloroethene(127-18-4) 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethene 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethylene Ethene, tetrachloro- Ethylenetetrachloride Perchloroethylene Perclene Tetrachloroethene Tetrachloroethylene	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Toluene(108-88-3) Benzene, methyl Methacide Methylbenzene Methylbenzol Phenylmethane Toluene Toluol	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Trichloroethene(79-01-6) 1,1,2-Trichloroethene 1,1,2-Trichloroethylene Ethene, trichloro Ethinyl trichloride Ethylene trichloride Ethylene, trichloro- TCE Tri-clene Trichloroethene Trichloroethylene	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Vinyl chloride(75-01-4) Chloroethene Ethene, chloro Ethene, chloro- Monochloroethylene Vinyl chloride Vinyl chloride (monomer)	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
Volatile organic compounds(E-12419) Organic compounds, volatile VOCs Volatile organic compounds	N/A	N/A	N/A
cis-1,3-Dichloropropene(10061-01-5) 1,3-Dichloropropene, (z) 1,3-cis-Dichloro-1-propene 1,3-cis-Dichloropropene 1,3-cis-Dichloropropylene 1-Propene, 1,3-dichloro-, (Z)- Telone II cis-1,3-Dichloropropene	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
trans-1,2-Dichloroethene(156-60-5) 1,2-trans-Dichloroethene 1,2-trans-Dichloroethylene Acetylenedichloride, trans- Ethene, 1,2-dichloro-, (E)- trans-1,2-Dichloroethene trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene trans-Acetylene dichloride	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A
trans-1,3-Dichloropropene(10061-02-6) 1,3-Dichloropropene (trans) 1,3-trans-Dichloro-1-propene 1,3-trans-Dichloropropene 1,3-trans-Dichloropropylene 1-Propene, 1,3-dichloro-, (E)- trans-1,3-Dichloropropene	3.000 ug/L	N/A	N/A

Precision Descriptor Notes:
Detection Level Note:	Determination of purgeable organic compounds in water and water-suspended sediment mixtures containing at least 3 ug/L of a reportable analyte.

Revision	PDF/Link
1983

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USGS-NWQL: O-3115: Purgeable Organic Compounds in Water

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