Determination of acetone and methyl ethyl ketone in water

Analytical procedures for the determination of acetone and methyl ethyl ketone in water samples were developed. Concentrations in the milligram-per-liter range were determined by injecting an aqueous sample into the analysis system through an injection port, trapping the organics on Tenax-GC at room temperature, and thermally desorbing the organics into a gas chromatograph with a flame ionization detector for analysis. Concentrations in the microgram-per-liter range were determined by sweeping the headspace vapors over a water sample at 50C, trapping on Tenax-GC, and thermally desorbing the organics into the gas chromatograph. The precision for two operators of the milligram-per-liter concentration procedure, expressed as the coefficient of variation, was generally less than 2 percent for concentrations ranging from 16 to 160 milligrams per liter. The precision from two operators of the microgram-per-liter concentration procedure was between 2 and 4 percent for concentrations of 20 and 60 micrograms per liter. (Woodard-USGS)