Measurement of Dispersed Oil in Water Using an Infrared Analysis Method

In order to trace, control, and prevent hydrocarbon pollution in our waterways, government and industry agencies are looking to inexpensive, reliable, and rapid methods to test water samples. This application note presents a CFC-free extraction method based on ASTM D7066-4, using the Nicolet iS5 FT-IR spectrometer, for the rapid determination of hydrocarbon levels in water or soil samples. It is shown that the instrument is capable of 10-fold higher sensitivity than that described in the ASTM method.