Solid phase extraction cleanup for non-polar and moderately polar molecular markers of PM2.5 sources

A solid phase extraction cleanup step substantially improved analytical efficiency and data quality for measurements of non-polar and moderately polar organic molecular marker concentrations in airborne particulate matter. Rapid gas chromatography column deterioration was evident after very few samples in the absence of a cleanup step, resulting in the need for frequent recalibration. High molecular weight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, were among the species most strongly impacted by the deterioration, exhibiting deviations as high as 30–40% from expected calibration verification standard values after only a few injections. Column deterioration and calibration verification failure were eliminated by introducing a solid phase extraction step prior to analysis and a total of 58 samples were analyzed with no unacceptable deviation of calibration verification standards from target values