THE USE OF THE HELIUM IONIZATION DETECTOR FOR GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHIC MONITORING OF TRACE ATMOSPHERIC COMPONENTS

Two different gas chromatographic detectors, the helium ionization det ector (HID) and the more commonly used flame ionization detector (FID) , were used in parallel to compare their responses to a number of orga nic compounds, Atmospherically important oxygenated species were analy zed, as well as hydrocarbons and chlorinated and sulfur containing org anics. The HID exhibited the better response to all compounds investig ated, most notably to formaldehyde and higher oxygenates, A gas chroma tographic system was developed to trap and analyze atmospheric organic compounds with HID detection, This required careful choice of the ads orbent material and removal of inorganic components (namely nitrogen a nd oxygen) before analysis, Real air samples were then taken and analy zed qualitatively for a range of olefinic and aromatic compounds.