Passive air sampling for PCBs : field calculation of atmospheric sampling rates by Triolein containing semi-permeable membrane devices.

Triolein-containing standard U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) designed semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) were deployed in the field alongside conventional active air sampling equipment for durations of up to 3 months. A high degree of reproducibility between duplicate samples and linear uptake of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) by the USGS SPMDs were observed. USGS SPMD air sampling rates were calculated for a range of PCBs. Sampling rates were found to be higher in winter than in summer and in general increased with increasing chlorination and decreased with increasing ortho-substitution. The sampling rate for the sum of the ICES congeners (IUPAC congeners 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153, and 180) was found to be 1.9 m3 day-1 SPMD-1 in summer (mean temperature 18 °C) and 7.6 m3 day-1 SPMD-1 in winter (mean temperature 4 °C). In a separate study USGS SPMDs were deployed for 2 months, and sequestered concentrations and the aforementioned sampling rates were used to calculate atmospheric concentrations. Excellent agreement was found between air concentrations calculated from the SPMDs and active samplers. The immense potential of these lipid-containing USGS SPMDs for time-integrated passive atmospheric monitoring of gas-phase persistent organic pollutants (POPs), for example, in remote areas or for spatial mapping near potential sources, is confirmed