Environmental applications of thermal extraction cone penetrometry and ultrafast gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

This article describes the collection and analysis of organic contaminants at depth without bringing soil to the surface. A thermal extraction cone penetrometer (TECP) probe was used to extract soil-bound semivolatile organics, transferring them to the surface for analysis by ultrafast gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Findings showed that polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated pesticides, and explosives could be collected and analyzed in 5 min when the soil-water content was <20% and in 15 min when it was between 20 and 35%. When the TECP was directly connected to the GC/MS, trinitrotoluene (TNT) and four of its synthetic precursors were speciated in 20 sec. Moreover, 51 VOCs were detected by membrane-inlet mass spectrometry in ∼10 sec. Organics were “sniffed” from a vial and identified using the Ion Fingerprint Detection™ software. The algorithms provide the means to untangle complex mass spectra making real-time, electronic nose detection and identification by MS possible. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Field Analyt Chem Technol 5: 60–68, 2001