ABSTRACT
This chapter briefly discusses the application, chemical properties and physical properties of tetrahydrofuran. It presents detailed information on the air analysis and analysis of aqueous samples of tetrahydrofuran. Tetrahydrofuran is used as a solvent and colorless liquid with ether-like odor. It is miscible with water and most organic solvents, and highly flammable. During the analysis of aqueous samples of tetrahydrofuran, aqueous samples are extracted by the purge and trap method. The sorbent trap is heated and backflushed with He to transfer the analyte onto a capillary gas chromatography (GC) column interfaced to a mass spectrometer. Alternatively, aqueous samples are directly injected onto the GC column for flame ionization detector (FID) determination. During the air analysis of tetrahydrofuran, air is drawn through a solid sorbent tube containing coconut shell charcoal.
