Phenol is determined in atmospheric air using sorption on Chromosorb 1
02 followed by two step extraction: first, phenol is desorbed from Chr
omosorb with benzene and, second, phenol is withdrawn from benzene ext
ract with 0.1 mol l(-1) NaOH. Both the benzene extracts are analyzed b
y gas chromatography using capillary columns. The method is specific a
nd accurate to within 15%. The limit of determination is about 1 mu g
m(-3).