Distillation Cleanup Preceded GC Determination of Short-Chain Monocarboxylic Acids in Aqueous and Solid Samples of Wastewater Origin

Short-chain monocarboxylic acids (SCMAs) (C2-C5) formed in the process of aerobic biodegradation of larger organic molecules should often be monitored to optimize wastewater biological treatment and study the processes of converting organic waste matter into methane, etc. Gas chromatography (GC) seems a method of choice for such a task. Majority of samples require clean up before they can be injected into GC system. In this work a special refluxing apparatus is applied to concentrate and clean up the troublesome environment samples before injection into GC. To optimize separation of SCMAs in aqueous sample a special arrangement of two capillary columns, of very different polarity was used. The operational parameters of sample preparation were optimized and enrichment factors determined. The procedure developed was applied to determine SCMAs in troublesome aqueous and solid samples of wastewater treatment origin.