Determination of dimethyl and diethyl sulfate in air by gas chromatography

An analytical method for the determination of dimethyl sulfate (DMS) and diethyl sulfate (DES) in air has been developed. The DMS and DES are adsorbed on silica gel, desorbed with acetone and determined by gas chromatography using a flame photometric detector. A solvent venting valve is utilized to allow the injection of a large sample volume without overloading the detector. By using this method, the minimum detectable concentrations in the atmosphere for DMS and DES, based on a 20 L air sample, are 0.04 ppm and 0.1 ppm, respectively.