A PF-GC for Environmental Health Breath Assessment

气动聚焦气相色谱法（PFGC，专利申请中）已达到检测限为20万亿分之一（0.8 pmol/升）的苯在波特兰或环境空气中。PFGC具有用于通用碳氢化合物检测的FID。人类呼吸中的主要内源性化合物是甲烷、甲醇、乙醇、丙酮、乙酸甲酯和异戊二烯。它们的浓度范围从甲烷的80 nmol/L到乙酸甲酯的400 pmol/L或更低。据报道，人类呼吸中存在超过1000种其他化合物，其中许多来自吸入的空气。暴露于BTEX或其他工业化学品等有毒物质会在呼吸和周围空气环境中表现出来。PFGC可以检测呼吸和环境空气中已经建立的化合物，比目前的仪器方法具有更好的灵敏度和更低的成本。PFGC有可能标准化呼吸分析研究的方法。第一阶段的目标是修改3个商业气相色谱仪的气动聚焦，并证明其性能在单柱和双柱模式。将评价分离度和选择性的特定毛细管柱选择。将通过同时进行室内空气/呼吸分析来评价性能，以评估毒性暴露和通过肺部吸收挥发性有机化合物。拟定商业应用：潜在的商业应用包括用于现场暴露评估和标准监测概况的呼吸分析，作为人类和其他生物体暴露和代谢研究的研究工具，以及用于人寿保险筛查药物使用、吸烟的被动标志物，以及作为有毒化学品暴露评估工具。

Pneumatic Focusing Gas Chromatography (PFGC, patent pending) has achieved a limit of detection of 20 parts per trillion (0.8 pmol/liter) for benzene in ambient air in Portland OR. PFGC has a FID for universal hydrocarbon detection. Major endogenous compounds in human breath are methane, methanol, ethanol, acetone, methyl acetate, and isoprene. Their concentrations range from 80 nmol/L for methane to 400 pmol/L or less for methyl acetate. More than 1000 additional compounds have been reported present in human breath, many originating in the inhaled air. Exposure to toxics such as BTEX or other industrial chemicals will evidence itself in breath as well as in the ambient air environment. PFGC can detect the compounds already established in breath and ambient air with better sensitivity and lower cost than current instrumental methods. PFGC has the potential to standardize the methodology of breath analysis research. The goal of Phase I is to modify 3 commercial gas chromatographs for pneumatic focusing and demonstrate their performance in single and dual-column modes. Specific capillary column choice for resolution and selectivity will be evaluated. Performance will be evaluated with simultaneous indoor air/breath analysis for assessment of toxic exposure and uptake through the lungs of volatile organic compounds. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: Potential commercial applications include breath analysis for exposure assessment onsite, and in standard monitoring profiles, as a research tool of human and other organismal exposure and metabolic studies, and for life insurance screening for passive markers of drug use, tobacco smoking, and as a toxic chemical exposure assessment tool.