Abstract
The development of synfuel technology has focused attention on the determination and control of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in the work and general environments. As a group, PAH are perhaps the most important family of compounds of concern to the industrial hygienist in the synfuel industry. The resolution and detection of PAH present in an environmental sample remain challenging analytical tasks. This paper describes refinements in the analytical scheme and detection of multiple PAH by a combined HPLC and GC/MS approach in samples collected over several months in various areas of a coal conversion facility. The method has been proven to be a rapid, more sensitive, and less expensive approach than GC/MS alone, and has been applied successfully to a large number of samples collected in the real coal conversion environment.