Thermal Desorption

Volatilization Sequence

Paperboard samples are placed into inert glass or stainless steel desorption tubes without solvent extraction steps. The desorption tube is inserted into a specialized heating unit where carrier gas sweeps through the sample during heating cycles. Thermal energy volatilizes trapped organic compounds, driving them out of the paperboard matrix into the carrier gas stream.

Released analytes concentrate inside a cold trap cooled by cryogenic gas or thermoelectric elements to focus volatile bands. Rapid heating of the focused cold trap injects the concentrated analyte band onto a gas chromatography column as a sharp plug. Eliminating organic solvent extraction increases analytical sensitivity and reduces sample preparation errors.

Recovery Limitation

Substrates with high moisture content require pre-purging steps to prevent water vapor from freezing inside cold traps and blocking gas flow. Non-volatile synthetic binders remain un-evaporated inside desorption tubes, accumulating as non-volatile residues over multiple analytical runs.