Determination of short-chain organic acids in airborne aerosols by ion chromatography

A selective and simple procedure has been set up, suitable for determining the content of the undissociated fraction of mono- and dicarboxylic acids i n atmospheric suspended particles. It comprises the soxhlet extraction of s amples with a dichloromethane-acetone mixture, solvent replacement with met hanol and water and finally, ion chromatographic analysis (HPIC) operated i n the gradient mode. The application of the method to airborne particles co llected in different locations, worldwide (urban, forest and remote) is dis cussed.