Measurement of indoor formaldehyde concentrations with a passive sampler

An existing Ferm type passive sampler technique has been further developed to measure concentrations of formaldehyde gas in indoor air. Formaldehyde forms a derivative after reaction with a filter coated with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (2,4-DNPH). The formaldehyde 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine derivative (formaldehyde-2,4-DNPH) is extracted from the filter, and the concentration is determined by high performance liquid chromatography. The technique has been Validated against an active sampling method, and the agreement is close when the appropriate laminar boundary layer depth is applied to the passive measurement. For this technique an exposure period of 3 days is equivalent to a limit of detection of formaldehyde of 3.4 ppbv and a limit of quantification of 7.6 ppbv. To test the performance of the passive samplers ambient formaldehyde measurements were carried out inside homes and in a range of workplace environments.