Abstract

A new method for the determination of atomic chlorine in landfill gas samples based on direct gaseous injection and ICP emission spectrometry is described. Samples were collected from landfill gas sites using stainless-steel Gresham tubes and then transferred to a gas syringe linked to a gas sampling manifold. Based on monitoring the atomic chlorine line at 134.74 nm, linear calibration was established for standard gas mixtures (CH₄/CO₂ containing organochlorine compounds) over the concentration range 0–980 mg m⁻³ (atomic Cl basis) and the limit of detection (3s) was 0.98 mg m⁻³. Relative to GC-MS analysis, the main analytical advantages were rapid analysis time (3 min versus 20 min per sample) and simplicity of data evaluation.