Despite health concerns regarding exposure to 1,3-butadiene, there is a dearth of validated methods for its determination in nonoccupational environments. A sampling and analytical methodology is validated for determining 1,3-butadiene in suchenvironments. Samples were collected via sorbent tubes containing 1000 mg of Carbopack B and 150 mg of Carbosieve SIII and analyzed by TD (thermal desorption)-GC/MS. This sorbent combination was compared to that of 600 mg of Carboxen 569. When samplingfor 2 h at 30 mL min{sup}(-1), 20℃ and relative humidity 60, Carbopack B/Carbosieve SIII gave 1,3-butadiene recoveries >95, compared to ca. 60 for Carboxen 569. The combined sampling and analytical precision of Carbopack B/Carbosieve III was 13 at0.17μg m{sup}(-3), with a detection limit <0.16μg m{sup}(-3). Optimum sampling conditions were as follows: duration 2 h, flow rate 30 mL min{sup}(-1), maximum temperature 35℃. The impact on sampling efficiency of ozone concentrations and relativehumidity was negligible. Simultaneous sampling with both Carboxen 569 alone and Carbopack B/Carbosieve Sill in a range of nonoccupational environments and sampling conditions revealed 1,3-butadiene concentrations to be 24-58 when the latter sorbent wasused, suggesting that measurements made using carbon molecular sieve sorbents such as Carboxen 569 are underestimates.
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