Improvements in Portable Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry for Volatile Organic Compounds Detection

SABIN KASPAROGLU, Anthony S. Wexler, University of California, Davis

     Abstract Number: 43
     Working Group: Instrumentation and Methods

Abstract
Air pollution causes significant health problems and environmental concerns. Small atmospheric particles and toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) serve as key contributors to air pollution. These pollutants affect human health, wildlife, and vegetation. VOCs have diverse origins, releasing from both natural sources such as wildfires and vegetation as well as anthropogenic sources, including vehicle emissions, the burning of fossil fuels, and heavy industrial processes. Recognizing the severity of this issue, the US Environmental Protection Agency has identified over 180 compounds as hazardous air pollutants, the majority of which are VOC, requiring monitoring to protect public health and the environment. Thus, determining the air pollutants to which populations and vegetation are exposed is a primary concern. One significant consequence of VOCs is observed in the wine industry, known as smoke taint. Volatile phenols released from wildfires can deposit on the grapes in vineyards causing an undesirable taste in the wine, which cannot be detected before the fermentation process. A common analytical method for measuring VOCs is gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS), which can detect and quantify VOCs in both indoor and outdoor environments. This method can separate identical molecules by their volatility and mass-to-ion ratio. In this work, we will demonstrate our progress in developing a low-cost, lightweight, battery-powered portable GC/MS intended to be more accessible to a broader audience, and for this application can be deployed in the field to assess phenols in wine grapes and in wildfire smoke. Additionally, we will show smoke taint analysis in grape samples exposed to controlled combustion emissions for early detection of volatile phenol by using our portable GC/MS.