Solid phase microextraction (SPME) sampling under turbulent conditions and for the simultaneous collecting of tracer gases

Solid phase microextraction (SPME) is a solvent-free method of sample collection. SPME is an appealing method for sample collection because it is designed for the sampling of trace level analytes with short sampling times in a variety of environments. Additionally, SPME can be used to directly deliver a sample to a gas chromatograph (GC) for analysis by means of thermal desorption. In this paper, the performance of SPME under dynamic conditions was investigated. Additionally, the competence of SPME sampling for the simultaneous analysis of multiple trace analytes was also evaluated. This work is discussed in the context of underground mine ventilation surveys but is applicable to any industry in which ventilation circuits must be evaluated. The results of this paper showed that the performance of the 100 μm PDMS SPME fiber was both precise and rapid under dynamic conditions. This SPME fiber was also able to simultaneously collect sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) and perfluoromethylcyclohexane (PMCH) with adequate sensitivity.