Advancing passive sampling of contaminants in environmental science
Guest editors Philipp Mayer, Frank Wania and Charles Wong introduce the Passive sampling themed issue of Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts.
Measurement of environmental pollutants using passive sampling devices – an updated commentary on the current state of the art
State-of-the-art of passive sampling techniques for environmental monitoring; future applications and directions for research.
A review of passive sampling systems for ambient air mercury measurements
Application of passive sampling methods for measurement of Hg concentrations and deposition is useful for understanding sources and trends.
Monitoring for contaminants of emerging concern in drinking water using POCIS passive samplers
Contaminants of emerging concern (CEC) have been detected in drinking water world-wide.
Cluster analysis of passive air sampling data based on the relative composition of persistent organic pollutants
Cluster analyses of POP data distinguish sampling sites influenced by local sources from those with regional or continental POP fingerprints.
Remedy performance monitoring at contaminated sediment sites using profiling solid phase microextraction (SPME) polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) fibers
A demonstration of solid phase microextraction techniques using polydimethylsiloxane fibers to assess in situ contaminated sediment remedy performance at three sites.
Paper
Quantitative passive soil vapor sampling for VOCs- part 2: laboratory experiments
Passive diffusive samplers for VOC concentration monitoring can also be used under conditions similar to soil vapor sampling applications.
Quantitative passive soil vapor sampling for VOCs- part 3: field experiments
Passive soil vapor sampling can now be used to quantify concentrations of VOC vapors, no longer just the relative mass.
Outdoor passive air monitoring of semi volatile organic compounds (SVOCs): a critical evaluation of performance and limitations of polyurethane foam (PUF) disks
A polyurethane foam passive air sampler shows large inter-compound variability in sampling performance for semivolatile organic compounds in the outdoor environment.
Quantitative passive soil vapor sampling for VOCs- part 1: theory
Passive soil vapor sampling has been used for VOC assessment for decades, but the ability to determine concentrations from the mass of an analyte sorbed by the sampler has not been well established, until now.
Paper
Evaluation of DGT as a long-term water quality monitoring tool in natural waters; uranium as a case study
DGT can be used as a long-term water quality environmental monitoring tool, however extensive DBL measurements are recommended.
Paper
Silicone passive equilibrium samplers as ‘chemometers’ in eels and sediments of a Swedish lake
The potential of passive equilibrium sampling to study the thermodynamic controls on persistent organic chemicals in the environment is illustrated for bioaccumulation of HCB and PCBs in a Swedish lake.
Testing flow-through air samplers for use in near-field vapour drift studies by measuring pyrimethanil in air after spraying
Field evaluation of flow-through samplers indicates their viability as a wind-driven alternative to high-volume samplers in pesticide vapour drift studies.
Field calibration of low density polyethylene passive samplers for gaseous POPs
A field calibration study of low density polyethylene for measuring atmospheric concentrations of persistent organic pollutants was performed in East Providence (RI), USA.
Paper
Neutral polyfluoroalkyl substances in the global Atmosphere
Active and passive air sampling confirms ubiquitous presence of fluorinated telomer alcohols, sulfonamides, and sulfonamidoethanols in the global atmosphere.
About this collection
This themed collection, guest edited by Philipp Mayer, Frank Wania and Charles S. Wong showcases some of the latest developments in passive sampling research – which has now progressed well beyond measuring aqueous concentrations of legacy contaminants. The contributions in this collection contain a wide range of different passive sampling approaches which were applied to water, air, soil vapours, sediments and even fish tissue. Improved sampler designs and materials are being developed and tested, contributing to the increasing popularity of passive sampling. The apparent simplicity of passive sampling is at the core of its true potential and betrays a wealth of opportunity for future research and monitoring.