METHOD FOR MEASURING THE CONTENT OF HALOGENATED ORGANIC COMPOUNDS IN SOIL SAMPLES

摘要

A method for measuring the halogenated organic com-pound content, e.g., polychlorinated biphenyl ("PCB") con-tent, of soil samples may effectively be carried out with aninexpensive, disposable (that is, single-use) field testkit. The method includes contacting a weighed soil samplesuspected of containing PCB or some other organohalogen con-taminant with a pre-mixture of water and an organic solventin which water is slightly soluble. The water extracts anyinorganic halides which may be present and would adverselyaffect the accuracy of the test. The organic solvent wetsthe moist soil sample sufficiently to extract any PCB there-in. The resultant organic solvent phase is separated fromthe soil sample and aqueous phase, dried by passage througha moisture-adsorbent material to remove or at least greatlyreduce its moisture content, and analyzed by means of acolor-change titration to determine halide content, andthereby the PCB (or other organohalogen) content, of thesoil sample.