An Evaluation of Benzene in the Presence of Gasoline by Active and Passive Sampling Methods

Abstract

This research project examined the capability of both the active and passive methods to evaluate the amount of benzene vapor in an environment composed of a complex mixture of competing organic vapors (gasoline). Activated charcoal tubes and three brands of passive organic vapor monitors (3M 3520, SKC Solid Sorbent Badge, and MSA Vaporgard^TM) were exposed to four concentration levels of benzene in the presence of gasoline, and all results were evaluated against the NIOSH acceptance criteria for sampling and analytical methods. Each type of sampler was then compared to each of the other tested samplers to determine the overall similarity of the results as determined by the different devices. The samplers were also subjected to a benzene environment without gasoline to establish baseline response criteria for comparative purposes. The test results indicated that three of the four methods examined met the NIOSH criteria (ACT, 3M, and SKC). The fourth method (MSA) failed due to significant benzene levels found in the blanks for this method. Only the SKC badges and the ACTs were shown to have statistically equivalent responses. Exposure to the complex mixture of organic vapors had an adverse effect on the overall system accuracies of each of the tested samplers.