32-week holding-time study of SUMMA polished canisters and triple sorbent traps used to sample organic constituents in radioactive waste tank vapor headspace
- Pacific Northwest National Lab., Richland, WA (United States). Environmental Technology Div.
- Lockheed Martin Hanford Corp., Richland, WA (United States). TWRS Technical Operations and Engineering
Two sampling methods [SUMMA polished canisters and triple sorbent traps (TSTs)] were compared for long-term storage of trace organic vapor samples collected from the headspaces of high-level radioactive waste tanks at the US Department of Energy`s Hanford Site in Washington State. The two methods were found to provide generally equivalent results. Because safety, quality assurance, radiological controls, and somewhat complex sample custody arrangements frequently precluded rapid analysis, the long-term stability of the sampling media during storage needed to be addressed. Samples were analyzed with a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS) using cryogenic preconcentration or thermal desorption sample introduction techniques. SUMMA canister samples were also analyzed for total non-methane organic compounds (TNMOC) by GC/flame ionization detector (FID) using EPA Compendium Method TO-12. The 31 target organic analytes studied represented compounds with widely varying polarities and volatilities. To verify the long-term stability of the sampling media, multiple samples were collected in parallel from a typical passively ventilated radioactive waste tank known to contain moderately high concentrations of both polar and nonpolar organic compounds. Two sets of sorbent trap samples were collected to compare the effects of storage under refrigerated and room temperature conditions. Analyses for organic analytes and TNMOC were conducted at increasing intervals over a 32-week period to determine whether any systematic degradation of sample integrity occurred.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 323759
- Journal Information:
- Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 32, Issue 21; Other Information: PBD: 1 Nov 1998
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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