PRECONCENTRATION AND DETERMINATION OF NAPHTHALENE IN AIR AND WATER USING ACTIVATED CARBON ADSORPTION, CARBON-DISULFIDE EXTRACTION AND GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY

A new method for the determination of naphthalene in air and water has been developed. The naphthalene was preconcentrated using activated c arbon adsorption with carbon disulfide extraction and determined by ga s chromatography with flame ionization detection. The chromatographic peak of naphthalene was separated well from the potential interferents turpentine, terpenene, isoborneol, camphor and isobornyl acetate. The detection limit was 0.52 mug/ml of CS2, equivalent to 2.6 mug/m3 of a ir or 0.05 mug/ml in 50 ml of water. The precision for 10 mug/ml napht halene was 1.7%. The adsorption capacity, sampling efficiency and deso rption efficiency of 100 mg of activated carbon for naphthalene in air were 8.8 mg, 98.8% and 95.2%, respectively. The extraction efficiency of 5 ml of carbon disulfide for naphthalene in water was 97.6%. The m ethod was successfully applied to the determination of naphthalene in air and water from an industrial plant.