Form Approved
REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE
OMB No. 0704-0188
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1. AGENCY USE ONLY (Leave blank)
2. REPORT DATE
3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED
February 1995
4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE
5. FUNDING NUMBERS
Chemical Preservation of Volatile Organic Compounds in Soil
Subsamples
6. AUTHORS
Alan D. Hewitt
7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)
8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION
REPORT NUMBER
U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory
72 Lyme Road
Special Report 95-5
Hanover, New Hampshire 03755-1290
9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)
10. SPONSORING/MONITORING
AGENCY REPORT NUMBER
U.S. Army Environmental Center
Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland 21010-5401
SFIM-AEC-ET-CR-95007
11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES
12a. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
12b. DISTRIBUTION CODE
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Available from NTIS, Springfield, Virginia 22161
13. ABSTRACT (Maximum 200 words)
This study evaluated chemical preservation as a means of inhibiting the biological degradation of volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) in soil subsamples held for 14 days or longer. Experiments were performed using a soil in
which benzene and toluene were found to rapidly biodegrade under aerobic conditions while following
protocols consistent with high-level (VOCs at >1 g/g) and low-level (VOCs at <1 g/g) purge-and-trap gas
chromatography mass spectrometry and static headspace gas chromatography analysis. Chemical preservation
consisted of immersing soil subsamples fortified with trans-1,2-dichloroethylene (TDCE), trichloroethylene
(TCE), benzene and toluene in methanol or water acidified to a pH of less than 2 with NaHSO4. These two methods
of chemical preservation resulted in stable concentrations of these two aromatic hydrocarbons even when held
at room temperature. The two chlorinated hydrocarbons showed stable concentrations with and without
chemical preservation. This result, in conjunction with earlier findings, suggests that chemical preservation is
more effective at suppressing biodegradation than the current practice of refrigeration (4C).
14. SUBJECT TERMS
15. NUMBER OF PAGES
14
Chemical preservation
Soil sampling
16. PRICE CODE
Hazardous waste
Volatile organic compounds
17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
18. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
19. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
20. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT
OF REPORT
OF THIS PAGE
OF ABSTRACT
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
UL
Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89)
NSN 7540-01-280-5500
Prescribed by ANSI Std. Z39-18
298-102
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