Primary concentration measurements of natural volatile organic compounds in atmosphere using the headspace solid-phase microextraction method within the forest

Abstract

This study presents methods for the capture and analysis of natural volatile organic compounds (NVOCs) released in the atmosphere of a natural environment. Twenty reference materials were used to draw calibration curves with the headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) method. By calculating the calibration curves, obtaining the quantifications of each component, and deterrnining the area ratio of mass numbers by diluting the reference materials of each substance, the coefficients of determination are shown to be a nunimum of 0.997, e.g., α-Pinene (R2 = 0.997) and β-Pinene (R2 = 0.998), and a high reproducibility is indicated. Detection and quantification limits are below 0.07 and 0.24 ng, respectively, for all materials. To determine the amount of NVOCs measured in the atmosphere within forests, sampling was performed for a total of 14 air volume sections collected from a coniferous region using disposable tubes from September to October 2012. The results of the comparative analysis of the detected NVOC substances in these air volumes show the highest efficiency in the 9 L section. The analyte detection accuracy is between 85.8 and 110.9; this accuracy is high despite the high boiling point, which confirms that the NVOC analysis using the HS-SPME method is effective.