Assessment of a new passive device for the monitoring of benzene and othervolatile aromatic compounds in the atmosphere

"Analyst", a new passive device designed to carry out in the same vial both collection and solvent extraction of volatile organic air pollutants sampl ed on an active charcoal bed has been evaluated. Laboratory and field tests performed in urban and indoor sites are discussed. Tests carried out in or der to determine accuracy and precision, wind velocity influence, storage e ffects, response linearity, and employment limits show that this device yie lds reliable results in long and medium-time determinations of volatile aro matic compounds (particularly benzene, toluene and xylenes) in the atmosphe re. Inter comparison with automatic instruments and "internal consistence" tests are also illustrated.