A Focus on the Emission of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from Raw Materials Potentially Used in Human Odor Sampling

Abstract

The present study provided an exhaustive examination of VOC emissions originating from 13 different raw materials susceptible to being used in the sampling of the human volatilome and encompassing both polymeric and non-polymeric compositions. To achieve this aim, thermodesorption coupled with comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TD-GC×GC/ToFMS) was employed. For each material, we report the total number of detected peaks, total volatile organic compound (TVOC) concentration, distribution of VOC emissions across different chemical families, minimum and maximum individual concentrations, as well as hypotheses regarding the origins of some specific VOCs depending on the material considered. The findings from this investigation revealed that materials, such as silicone and polyurethane, could emit an extensive array of VOCs, with up to 2000 chromatographic peaks detected, and emissions of total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) reaching levels of 5.4 µg·g−1 and 9.8 µg·g−1, respectively. In the case of polyamide, some VOCs could be related to potential reagents involved in its synthesis. While highlighting materials that should be used with caution depending on the topic and target analytes, this study identified materials that exhibited minimal VOC emissions, such as polytetrafluoroethylene, aluminum, and stainless steel, after an adequate conditioning step. The selected analytical technique, TD-GC×GC/ToFMS, proved its relevance to identify and characterize semi-quantitatively VOC emissions coming from those materials. Such information was essential within the frame of the development of a body odor sampling system, our primary objective.