Optimal Conditions for USEPA Method 8260 Analysis

Over the past decade, the need for environmental laboratories using purge and trap systems to report at or below the method detection limit (MDL) has created many new challenges. As a result of the required lower detection levels, water management, analyte migration and carryover reduction have become a critical concern to meet linear calibration criteria. This paper presents the optimum purge and trap system parameters used to generate US EPA method 8260B data. The conditions utilized provide the necessary sensitivity, linearity and accuracy compliant to this method.