Analysis of low- and non-volatile organic substances in the environment
Three analytical techniques were utilized for the analysis of low- and non-volatile organic materials in various environmental samples. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to characterize lipid materials extracted from atmospheric aerosol samples collected over the equatorial Pacific ocean. Although terrestrial-derived lipids were present, the major source of the aerosol lipids appeared to be local marine sources whereas previous reports of non-equatorial Pacific ocean aerosols indicated a major terrestrial source of lipids. A supercritical fluid chromatograph (SFC), with flame ionization and mass spectrometric detectors, was constructed for analysis of compound mixtures which could not be adequately separated by gas chromatography or liquid chromatography. One such application was the separation and quantitation of glycerol tetraether lipids of archaebacteria. A new theory of solute retention in SFC, in which entropy changes play a significant role, was also developed. Pattern recognition procedures were applied to pyrolysis-mass spectrometry (Py-MS) data for the characterization of complex non-volatile organic mixtures. In one study, Py-MS data were used to distinguish humic acids from fulvic acids in a varied suite of humic materials. Another Py-MS study involved the classification of southeast Asian environmental samples associated with yellow rain. The method classified samples as either pollen or bee feces with a 95% success rate.
- Research Organization:
- Colorado School of Mines, Golden (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 6886925
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Thesis (Ph. D.)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AIR
QUANTITATIVE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
FECES
MASS SPECTROSCOPY
FULVIC ACIDS
HUMIC ACIDS
LIPIDS
GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY
POLLEN
RAIN
QUALITATIVE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
SOILS
BEES
MIXTURES
PYROLYSIS
SUPERCRITICAL FLUID CHROMATOGRAPHY
ANIMALS
ARTHROPODS
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOLOGICAL WASTES
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHROMATOGRAPHY
DECOMPOSITION
DISPERSIONS
FLUIDS
GAMETES
GASES
GERM CELLS
HYMENOPTERA
INSECTS
INVERTEBRATES
MATERIALS
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SPECTROSCOPY
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
WASTES
400102* - Chemical & Spectral Procedures
400105 - Separation Procedures
500200 - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)
510200 - Environment
Terrestrial- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)