Air Laboratory Testing

The Merit Team analyzeS air samples for Soil Gas, Soil Vapor, Indoor Air, and Fenceline MOnitoring

Merit Laboratories Air Testing Leaders: Share the Air

As chemistry professionals committed to providing high quality analytical testing services, we understand the important role environmental laboratories play in providing cleaner air.  After all, clean air is only important if you breathe! Which is one of the reasons Merit Laboratories continuously invests in the latest instrumentation, method development procedures, and training to provide the most accurate data. 

Merit maintains multiple certifications for the analysis of air samples. Explore this page to learn more about specific air methods and project applicability. Please complete the project form below to learn more about how we can support your air project testing needs.

Authentically Independent Air Testing by Merit Laboratories

As a national leader in environmental testing, Merit Laboratories performs laboratory testing to support air projects.  Analytical testing performed by Merit includes the analysis of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) by EPA Method TO-15 and Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs/PNAs) by EPA Method TO-17. Merit is NELAP-accredited for the analysis of VOCs by TO-15.  Merit Laboratories also performs Method 325B to support fenceline monitoring programs. The laboratory maintains a large stock of sample collection media to support air projects, including bottle vacs, canisters, flow controllers and helium shrouds. 

What Air methods do we perform?

Merit Laboratories offers the following air analytical options.

TO-15: Merit analyzes a diverse range of air sample types, including soil gas, soil vapor, indoor air, and other air sample types, for Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) by the TO-15 method.

TO-17: Merit performs the analysis of air samples for Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs/PNAs) using TO-17.

325B: Merit supports fenceline monitoring programs for the analysis of benzene using Method 325B. Benzene is the representative compound used to measure overall emissions from refineries in the United States. The U.S. EPA requires refineries to collect and analyze air samples at the fenceline for low-level monitoring of benzene.

Does Merit Provides Clients with complete air sampling Media Solutions?

Yes, Merit maintains a large inventory of air sampling media supplies to support your sample collection efforts, including:

  • Soil Gas Bottle Type: Entech Instruments 1L amber bottle vac.

  • Soil Gas Flow Controller: Custom made flow controller that has a restrictor that allows the flow to be no greater than 200cc/min per VI guidance.

  • Helium Shroud: Custom-designed by Merit Laboratories, available for rent for our clients.

  • Indoor Air Flow Controller: Entech Instruments CS1200E Flow Controller (can be calibrated for various flow rates)

  • Indoor Air Bottle Type: Entech Instruments 1.4L canister

Helium Shroud for Soil Gas? That sounds cool, please tell me more about how the Helium Shroud can make Field Life Easier

Helium Shroud for Soil Gas

Soil gas sampling is easier with Merit’s helium shroud. Working closely with our client’s field sample collection needs in mind, Merit developed a helium shroud that makes soil gas sampling more efficient, accurate, and reproducible. And don't worry about tools or calibration in the field. Merit’s helium shroud requires no tools or field calibration. The helium shroud's quick-connect ports are proven time savers in the field. We make it easier.

The helium shroud is packaged in its own self enclosed transport container, providing clients with an easy-to-transport kit in the field. Following the instructions provided with each helium shroud, sample collection professionals are ready to sample in just a matter of minutes. Additionally, the shroud contains two helium meters allowing field staff to see the concentration in the shroud and in the line.

What is Included in Merit’s helium shroud sampling kit?

  • Interior helium detector (measuring in % helium using thermal conductivity)

  • Exterior helium detector (measuring in % helium using thermal conductivity)

  • Exterior flow pump 

  • Interior flow controller connection to the exterior flow pump

  • Access port in the bottom of the shroud for connection of sampling line to the flow controller

  • A 60mL syringe (to test for liquid in the well)

  • Helium tank

Where is the Helium Shroud Used for Soil Gas Sampling?

The helium shroud has been used by Merit’s clients for several years with great success at locations throughout the United States, from California to New York.

What are some Technical Advantages of Merit’s Helium Shroud?

Testing the soil gas sampling chain and well in a helium-enriched atmosphere quantifies that there has been no breakthrough of air at the sampling location, confirming that a valid soil gas sample is being collected. It should also be noted that using helium does not impact the target volatile organic compounds in laboratory testing.

Some other helium shrouds require the user to purge the well using a 60mL syringe pulled at a constant flow-rate of 200cc per minute.  This is much more difficult than it seems.  Merit alleviated this challenge by using a pump calibrated to exactly 200cc per minute allowing users to simply flip a switch and start a timer to purge the well.

After each trip to the field, the helium shroud is returned to Merit where it is inspected, cleaned, tested, and repackaged for transport.

Why areThe Silonite™ Ceramic Coated canisters Provided by Merit Superior to the Old Summa Canisters?

Put simply, summa canisters are an outdated technology.  Summa is for Wrestling not TO-15 Air Sampling

FIELD LIFE EASIER

The term summa canister is trying to go the way of other product names that have become generic titles for their intended purpose, like Kleenex and Band Aids.  The term summa canister is used in the environmental industry by many professionals to describe the sampling media used for air sampling prior to laboratory testing.  There is, however, inherent risk in believing that summa canister is an acceptable term that defines all air sampling media for TO-15 projects.       

Using a summa canister brings a significant risk when used for air sample collection and laboratory testing.  The biggest risk one encounters when using summa canisters is the potential for the Nickel Chromium Oxide internal coating to degrade, thus exposing the air sample to uncoated stainless steel.  Uncoated stainless steel (304) is about 70% iron, which is a highly reactive and catalytic element, and can promote chemical reactions leading to the loss of target compounds.  Another issue with the summa canister is the humidity of the air sample being collected.  Generally, any humidity less than 40% is problematic for summa canisters because of their need for water vapor to be present for analytical testing, also leading to the potential loss of reactive target compounds.

The best technology available for collecting passive air samples for method TO-15 is using a Silonite™ Ceramic Coated canister, eliminating the reactive risk of iron exposure associated with the summa canisters. Silonite™ ceramic coating is inert and durable, which allows for the complete recovery and storage of an extended range of organic compounds. Silonite™ also improves canister reliability and lifespan in the field.  Manufactured by Entech Instruments, these canisters are coated in Silonite™, which eliminates the risk of corrosion and subsequent loss of reactive compounds.  

So Smaller is Often Better? Why?

Another issue with summa canisters is the misconception about the sample volume  required.  Many laboratories are still pushing the large 6-Liter summa canisters on their clients because it is what they have in stock. There are actually very few project applications, however, when a 6-Liter canister would even be necessary.  Recent technological advances in analytical testing have made it unnecessary to collect a large 6-Liter air sample for nearly all environmental project applications.  Increased sensitivity in instrumentation combined with sample pre-concentration techniques have improved the signal-to-noise ratio, which reduces the volume of sample required to achieve regulatory reporting limits, while still allowing for multiple reruns if necessary. 

What is actually important is the sample collection rate of an air sample, not the sample volume.  According to Entech, it is sampling rates rather than sampling times that is the enabling condition, taking the canister volume out of the equation.  A smaller canister size allows shorter sampling times when collecting based on flow rate, such as soil gas, which improves efficiency, reducing the amount of tracer gas needed.  Using the large and cumbersome 6-liter summa canister adds additional expense in shipping, and exposes the analytical results to potential false negatives.  

Based upon these factors, Merit made the quality commitment to providing its clients with the better option for air sampling, the Silonite™ Ceramic Coated canister instead of summa canisters. Merit Laboratories performs laboratory testing to support soil gas and vapor intrusion projects.  Analytical testing performed by Merit includes the analysis of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) by EPA Method TO-15.

This sounds great. How do we set-up Air testing with Merit?

It's simple because we make things easy for our clients. To set-up an Air project, just contact Merit Laboratories at 517.332.0167, email at info@meritlabs.com, or complete the Air form below. We will guide you through the sample collection container needs, compound lists, holding times, and method selection.

Which compounds can Merit analyze for using TO-15?

  • Acetone

  • 1,3-Butadiene

  • Benzene

  • Bromodichloromethane

  • Bromoform

  • Bromomethane

  • Vinyl bromide

  • Benzyl chloride

  • Carbon disulfide

  • Chlorobenzene

  • Chloroethane

  • Chloroform

  • Chloromethane

  • 3-Chloropropene

  • 2-Chlorotoluene

  • Carbon tetrachloride

  • Cyclohexane

  • 1,1-Dichloroethane

  • 1,1-Dichloroethene

  • 1,2-Dibromoethane

  • 1,2-Dichloroethane

  • 1,2-Dichloropropane

  • 1,4-Dioxane

  • Dichlorodifluoromethane

  • Dibromochloromethane

  • trans-1,2-Dichloroethene

  • cis-1,2-Dichloroethene

  • cis-1,3-Dichloropropene

  • 1,3-Dichlorobenzene

  • 1,2-Dichlorobenzene

  • 1,4-Dichlorobenzene

  • trans-1,3-Dichloropropene

  • Ethanol

  • Ethylbenzene

  • Ethyl Acetate

  • 4-Ethyltoluene

  • Freon 113

  • Freon 114

  • Heptane

  • Hexachlorobutadiene

  • Hexane

  • 2-Hexanone

  • Isopropyl Alcohol

  • Methylene chloride

  • 2-Butanone (MEK)

  • 4-Methyl-2-pentanone (MIBK)

  • tert-Methyl butyl ether (MTBE)

  • Methyl methacrylate

  • Naphthalene

  • Propylene

  • Styrene

  • 1,1,1-Trichloroethane

  • 1,1,2,2,-Tetrachloroethane

  • 1,1,2-Trichloroethane

  • 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene

  • 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene

  • 1,3,5-Trimethylbenzene

  • 2,2,4-Trimethylpentane

  • Tert-butyl Alcohol

  • Tetrachloroethene

  • Tetrahydrofuran

  • Toluene

  • Trichloroethene

  • Trichlorofluoromethane

  • Vinyl chloride

  • Vinyl acetate

  • p,m-Xylene

  • o-Xylene

  • Total Xylenes

Note: This is a representative list of TO-15 compounds. Please contact Merit Laboratories when setting-up your air project to ensure appropriate data quality objectives are established for your project-specific requirements, including list of compounds and reporting limits.

Which compounds can Merit analyze for using TO-17?

  • Acenaphthene

  • Acenaphthylene

  • Anthracene

  • Fluroanthene

  • Fluorene

  • 1-Methylnaphthalene

  • 2-Methylnaphthalene

  • Naphthalane

  • Phenanthrene

  • Pyrene

Note: This is a representative list of TO-17 compounds. Please contact Merit Laboratories when setting-up your air project to ensure appropriate data quality objectives are established for your project-specific requirements, including list of compounds and reporting limits.