Recovery of Semi-Volatile Organic Compounds During Sample Preparation: Implications for Characterization of Airborne Particulate Matter

摘要

This study began as an effort to validate sample preparation procedures for characterization of gas and particle samples that had been collected with the high capacity (HiC) IOGAPS and related samplers. However, a more general purpose emerged with our growing recognition that insufficient attention to analyte recovery could undermine the efforts of any research team, with any sampling technology, to characterize the wide range of organics associated with PM. Thus, the broader objective is to describe the implications of these recovery results for past and future efforts to speciate airborne semi-volatile and particulate organics. The results of our quality control and quality assurance efforts broadened beyond devising procedures to optimize recovery of specific compounds to (1) exploring the implications of our results for interpretation of past efforts to characterize particulate organics and (2) developing recommendations for future work by any investigators.