US EPA

2202311 

Technical Report 

Simultaneous detection of halogenated and other compounds by electron-capture and flame-ionization detectors combined in series 

Sodergren, A 

1978 

PESTAB/79/0488 

Chromatogr 

1 

PESTAB. An apparatus was constructed to allow for the simultaneous detection of halogenated organics as well as other environmental pollutants. The method combined an all-glass ECD and an FID to a Varian 2700 gas chromatograph. Since ECD is a non-destructive process, the analyte sample passes undisturbed on to the FID via glass capillary tubing. A low volume detector was developed for use in the ECD which is sensitive to solute concentration. A cell volume of 0.15 ml was achieved by modifying the arrangement of the tritium foil in the ECD cell so that the sensitivity of the detector was comparable to the conventional ECD detection sensitivities. This new method was used to monitor the degradation and fate of pollutants in model aquatic ecosystems. Other test systems have demonstrated the usefulness of the method in detecting mineral oil residues in aquatic environments where PCB's are prevalent. Combined ECD-FID detection may also be utilized in the simultaneous detection of organochlorine pesticides and methyl esters of fatty acids. Lindane, BHC, aldrin, DDE, TDE, dieldrin, and DDT have been distinguished from lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic, and oleic acids in samples where these organochlorine pesticides and esters have been combined in mixtures. The accuracy of the combined ECD-FID detection is comparable to that of each method employed separately.