Determination of highly volatile organic contaminants in water by the closed-loop gaseous stripping technique followed by thermal desorption of the activated carbon filters

Very volatile organic contaminants in water were determined by using closed-loop gaseous stripping combined with thermal desorption from the activated carbon filter into a high-resolution gas chromatograph. The operating parameters for quantitative applications were evaluated. The solvent-free thermal desorption procedure permits the determination of compounds that normally elute under the gas chromatographic solvent peak (e.g., dichloromethane and Freons). Sixteen volatile compounds with boiling points in the range -30 to 120 degrees C were determined with an overall recovery of 12-52%. Qualitative determinations of volatiles from a secondary sewage effluent were in good agreement with the results found by two more established methods.