Real-time monitoring of BTEX in air via ambient-pressure MPI

Orven F. Swenson; Josef P. Carriere; Harlan Isensee; Gregory D. Gillispie; William F. Cooper; Michael A. Dvorak

doi:10.1117/12.308382

15 May 1998 Real-time monitoring of BTEX in air via ambient-pressure MPI

Orven F. Swenson, Josef P. Carriere, Harlan Isensee, Gregory D. Gillispie, William F. Cooper, Michael A. Dvorak

Proceedings Volume 3270, Methods for Ultrasensitive Detection; (1998) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.308382
Event: Optoelectronics and High-Power Lasers and Applications, 1998, San Jose, CA, United States

Abstract

We have developed and begun to field test a very sensitive method for real-time measurements of single-ring aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air. In this study, we focus on the efficient 1 + 1 resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI) of the BTEX species in the narrow region between 266 and 267 nm. We particularly emphasize 266.7 nm, a wavelength at which both benzene and toluene exhibit a sharp absorbance feature and benzene and its alkylated derivatives all absorb. An optical parametric oscillator system generating 266.7 nm, a REMPI cell, and digital oscilloscope detector are mounted on a breadboard attached to a small cart. In the first field test, the cart was wheeled through the various rooms of a chemistry research complex. Leakage of fuel through the gas caps of cars and light trucks in a parking lot was the subject of the second field test. The same apparatus was also used for a study in which the performance of the REMPI detector and a conventional photoionization detector were compared as a BTEX mixture was eluted by gas chromatography. Among the potential applications of the methodology are on-site analysis of combustion and manufacturing processes, soil gas and water headspace monitoring, space cabin and building air quality, and fuel leak detection.

Citation Download Citation

Orven F. Swenson, Josef P. Carriere, Harlan Isensee, Gregory D. Gillispie, William F. Cooper, and Michael A. Dvorak "Real-time monitoring of BTEX in air via ambient-pressure MPI", Proc. SPIE 3270, Methods for Ultrasensitive Detection, (15 May 1998); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.308382

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