Analysis of Aircraft Cabin Air by TD-GCxGC-TOFMS

While HEPA filtration does provide a level of protection against particulate pathogens, it does not provide protection from chemical vapors present in aircraft cabin and ventilation systems. The work presented here provides an example of a simple sampling technique for VOCs and SVOCs in a commercial aircraft cabin. These samples are complex and contain components over a wide range of volatilities and functionalities. When analyzed by GCxGC-TOFMS, the large number of individual components can be resolved and identified in a single analysis, providing an efficient means for the analyst to obtain a large amount of information about the sample with a minimum amount of effort.