Abstract
The analysis of low concentrations of certain volatile organic solvents in breath, blood, and urine can be performed entirely on a gas chromatograph equipped with a gas sample valve. Breath samples from human subjects exposed to methylene chloride were collected in Saran bags; blood and urine were placed directly into sealed flasks. A structural modification of the gas sample valve enabled a heated flask to be inserted into the gas sampling system, resulting in the direct measurement of the head space vapors. These procedures are rapid, simple, and generally applicable to the analysis of several volatile organic compounds either discretely or simultaneously.