On the Concentration of Chlorinated Hydrocarbons in Human Exhaled Air

For accurate evaluation of human exposure to VOC in the environmental air, concentrations of 5 volatile chemicals (tetrachloroethylene; 1, 1, 1-trichloroethane; trichloroethylene; carbon tetrachloride; chloroform) were measured both in exhaled and inhaled airs by GC/ECD analysis. When a clean air chamber was used to lower VOC concentrations in inhaled air, higher concentrations of exhaled air were observed, suggesting that the desorption of these chemicals from human body occurred. Some technical difficulties encountered during the experiments were discussed.