Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in China: Progress and Prospects of Research on Treatment Technologies and Policy Provisions

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are an atmospheric pollutant with a boiling point of 50˚C - 260˚C at room temperature and pressure. They are precursors of sulfur dioxide and ozone, which can seriously pollute the atmosphere and endanger human health. After the “14th Five-Year Plan”, VOCs, instead of SO2, became one of the five indicators of China’s atmospheric governance. As a result, the government’s efforts to control VOCs have increased significantly. VOCs governance mustn’t be delayed. This paper provides a comprehensive summary and analysis of VOCs governance, covering the classification of VOCs, analysis of VOC governance technology (with a focus on end-of-pipe governance technology), national policy regulations, current governance shortcomings, and a forward-looking perspective on the future direction of VOCs governance, emphasizing healthy and sustainable development.

Towards green asphalt materials with lower emission of volatile organic compounds: A review on the release characteristics and its emission reduction additives

Recently, researchers in the road field are focusing on the development of green asphalt materials with loweremission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The characterization methodology of asphalt VOCs and theinfluencing factors on VOCs release have always been the basic issue of asphalt VOCs emission reduction research.Researchers have proposed a variety of asphalt VOCs characterization methodologies, which also have mutuallyirreplaceable characteristics. Asphalt VOCs volatilization is affected by many factors. In this study, asphalt VOCscharacterization methodologies were summarized, including their advantages, disadvantages, characteristics andapplicable requirements. Subsequently, the influencing factors of VOCs release, such as asphalt types and environment conditions, are summarized to provide theoretical support for the emission reduction research. Theclassification and mechanism of newly-development asphalt VOCs emission reduction materials are reviewed. Thereduction efficiencies are also compared to select better materials and put forward the improvement objective ofnew materials and new processes. In addition, the prospects about development of VOCs release mechanism ofasphalt materials during the full life cycle and feasibility research of high-efficiency composite emission reductionmaterials in the future were put forward.

Advanced Technologies for Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Emission Treatment: An Overview

This paper presents a comprehensive overview of various advanced technologies employed in the treatment of volatile organic compounds(VOCs),which are crucial pollutants in industrial emissions.The study explores different methods,including direct combustion,thermal combustion,catalytic combustion,low-temperature plasma purification,photocatalytic purification,membrane separation,and adsorption methods.Each technology is critically analyzed for its operational principles,efficiency,and applicability under different conditions.Special attention is given to adsorption concentration and catalytic combustion parallel method,highlighting its efficiency in treating low-concentration,high-volume VOC emissions.The paper also delves into the advantages and limitations of each method,providing insights into their effectiveness in various industrial scenarios.The study aims to offer a detailed guide for selecting appropriate VOC treatment technologies,contributing to enhanced environmental protection and sustainable industrial practices.

Effective technology for processing industrial volatile organic compounds by the atmospheric pressure microwave plasma torch

In this study,we investigated the abatement of volatile organic compounds(VOCs)by the atmospheric pressure microwave plasma torch(AMPT).To study the treatment efficiency of AMPT,we used the toluene and water-based varnish to simulate VOCs,respectively.By measuring the compounds and contents of the mixture gas before/after the microwave plasma process,we have calculated the treatment efficiency of AMPT.The experimental results show that the treatment efficiency of AMPT for toluene with a concentration of 17.32×10^(4) ppm is up to 60 g/kWh with the removal rate of 86%.For the volatile compounds of water-based varnish,the removal efficiency is up to 97.99%.We have demonstrated the higher potential for VOCs removal of the AMPT process.

Remove volatile organic compounds(VOCs) with membrane separation techniques

Membrane separation, a new technology for removing VOCs including pervaporation, vapor permeation, membrane contactor, and membrane bioreactor was presented. Comparing with traditional techniques, these special techniques are an efficient and energy saving technology. Vapor permeation can be applied to recovery of organic solvents from exhaust streams. Membrane contactor could be used for removing or recovering VOCs from air or wastewater. Pervaporation and vapor permeation are viable methods for removing VOCs from wastewater to yield a VOC concentrate which could either be destroyed by conventional means, or be recycled for reuse.

Measurement of in-vehicle volatile organic compounds under static conditions

The types and quantities of volatile organic compounds （VOCs） inside vehicles have been determined in one new vehicle and two old vehicles under static conditions using the Thermodesorber-Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrometer （TD-GC/MS）. Air sampling and analysis was conducted under the requirement of USEPA Method TO-17. A room-size, environment test chamber was utilized to provide stable and accurate control of the required environmental conditions （temperature, humidity, horizontal and vertical airflow velocity, and background VOCs concentration）. Static vehicle testing demonstrated that although the amount of total volatile organic compounds （TVOC） detected within each vehicle was relatively distinct （4940 μg/m^3 in the new vehicle A, 1240 μg/m^3 in used vehicle B, and 132 μg/m^3 in used vehicle C）, toluene, xylene, some aromatic compounds, and various C7-C12 alkanes were among the predominant VOC species in all three vehicles tested. In addition, tetramethyl succinonitrile, possibly derived from foam cushions was detected in vehicle B. The types and quantities of VOCs varied considerably according to various kinds of factors, such as, vehicle age, vehicle model, temperature, air exchange rate, and environment airflow velocity. For example, if the airflow velocity increases from 0.1 m/s to 0.7 m/s, the vehicle＇s air exchange rate increases from 0.15 h^-1 to 0.67 h^-1, and in-vehicle TVOC concentration decreases from 1780 to 1201 μg/m^3.

Emissions of volatile organic compounds from heated needles and twigs of Pinus pumila

A study was conducted to explore the mechanism that emissions of volatile organic compounds（VOC） from heated needles and twigs（200°C,within 15 min） of Pinus pumila affect fire behaviours using the technology of Thermal Desorption-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry（TD-GC-MS）.The results indicated that the main components of VOC from heated needles and twigs are terpenoids.Most of these terpenoids are monoterpenes.Terpenoids account for 72.93% for the needles and 92.40% for the twigs of the total VOC,and their emission ratios are 61.200 μg·g-1 and 217.060 μg·g-1 respectively.Heated twigs can emit more terpenoids than heated needles because twigs had more volatile oils than needles.In actual fires,these large amounts of terpenoid emissions,especially the monoterpene emissions,have strong effects on fire behaviors that are not only in the initial stage but also in the fast propagation stage of fires.These flammable gases are capable of causing violent combustion and creating crown fires.In addition,if these gases accumulate in an uneven geographical area,there will be a possible for eruptive fires and/or fires flashover to occur.

Analyzing Method on Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds

In order to analyze biogenic volatile organic compounds in the atmosphere, an automated gas chromatography is developed and employed at the laboratory of National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) during January to July, 2000. A small refrigerator was used so as to remove water in the air sample from gas line, and get accurate concentrations of volatile organic compounds. At 5°C, good water removing efficiency can be obtained at controlled flow rate. Air samples were collected around the building of Mesa Lab. of NCAR and analyzed by this gas chromatography system. This paper reports this gas chromatography system and results of air samples. The experimental results show that this gas chromatography system has a good reproducibility and stability, and main interesting volatile organic compounds such as isoprene, monoterpenes have an evident diurnal variation.

Emissions of volatile organic compounds and carbonyl compounds from residential coal combustion in China

Emissions of volatile organic compounds （VOCs） and carbonyls from residential coal combustion of five coals with different maturities were studied in a simulated room.The coals were burned in form of honeycomb briquettes in a domestic coal stove,one of the most common fuel/stove combinations in China.Through a dilution system,VOCs and carbonyls samples were collected by canisters and silica-gel cartridges and analyzed by gas chromatography and mass spectrum （GC/MS） and high performance liquid chromatography/ultraviolet （HPLC/UV）,respectively.The results show that the bituminous coals with medium volatile matter content produce the highest emissions while the anthracite yields the lowest.Among the identified carbonyls from the coal smoke,the aromatic compounds （benzaldehyde,2,5-dimethylbenzaldehyde and p-tolualdehyde,m/o-tolualdehyde,benzene,m,p-xylene and trimethyl-benzene） were relatively abundant,which might be due to the molecular structure of the coal.For formaldehyde,aromatic carbonyls and aliphatic alkanes,their concentrations increase up to the maximum values and then decrease with increasing coal maturity.The total carbonyls and VOCs have the same tendency,which was observed for the emission factors of organic carbon （OC）,elemental carbon （EC）,particulate matter （PM） and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs） detected in the series study.

Research on Preparation Method of Static Head Space for Volatile Organic Compounds in Drinking Water

[Objective] This research aimed to study the pre-treatment conditions of head space so as to establish a HS-GC determination method, which is suitable for China's conditions, for trace volatile organic compounds in drinking water. [Method]The preparation method of head space was adopted for the volatile organic compounds in drinking water. [Result] The 20 kinds of volatile organic compounds in drinking water all could be detected simultaneously by using HS-GC-FID method,and they all could be separated well. The HS-GC-FID method could analyze the detected substances qualitatively and quantitatively. In addition, this detection method was characterized by larger linear range of concentration, higher precision, higher detection limit and higher recovery rate. [Conclusion] Under certain conditions, HSGC can reduce the loss of volatile organic compound in drinking water and improve the sensitivity of detection. Moreover, the detection results meet the requirements by quality control.

Differential volatile organic compounds in royal jelly associated with different nectar plants

The aim of this work was to distinguish volatile organic compound（VOC） profiles of royal jelly（RJ） from different nectar plants. Headspace solid-phase microextraction（HS-SPME） was used to extract VOCs from raw RJ harvested from 10 nectar plants in flowering seasons. Qualitative and semi-quantitative analysis of VOCs extracts were performed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry（GC-MS）. Results showed that VOC profiles of RJ from the samples were rich in acid, ester and aldehyde compound classes, however, contents of them were differential, exemplified by the data from acetic acid, benzoic acid methyl ester, hexanoic acid and octanoic acid. As a conclusion, these four VOCs can be used for distinguishing RJ harvested in the seasons of different nectar plants.

Prediction of Henry Constants and Adsorption Mechanism of Volatile Organic Compounds on Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes by Using Support Vector Regression

Support vector regression （SVR） combined with particle swarm optimization for its parameter optimization is employed to establish a model for predicting the Henry constants of multi-walled carbon nanotubes （MWNTs） for adsorption of volatile organic compounds （VOCs）. The prediction performance of SVR is compared with those of the model of theoretical linear salvation energy relationship （TLSER）. By using leave-one-out cross validation of SVR test Henry constants for adsorption of 35 VOCs on MWNTs, the root mean square error is 0.080, the mean absolute percentage error is only 1.19~, and the correlation coefficient （R2） is as high as 0.997. Compared with the results of the TLSER model, it is shown that the estimated errors by SVR are ali smaller than those achieved by TLSER. It reveals that the generalization ability of SVR is superior to that of the TLSER model Meanwhile, multifactor analysis is adopted for investigation of the influences of each molecular structure descriptor on the Henry constants. According to the TLSER model, the adsorption mechanism of adsorption of carbon nanotubes of VOCs is mainly a result of van der Waals and interactions of hydrogen bonds. These can provide the theoretical support for the application of carbon nanotube adsorption of VOCs and can make up for the lack of experimental data.

Research Progress on the Monitoring of Precursor of Atmospheric Ozone——Volatile Organic Compounds

Volatile organic compounds(VOCs)are important precursors of ozone and PM_(2.5).At present,VOCs have gradually become the focus of air pollution control after fine particles in China,and a series of documents,standards and planning on VOCs were issued from the state to each area.The analysis on source apportionment and control of VOCs have also become a hot spot in atmospheric environmental protection research of China at present stage.The research work on VOCs in ambient air is the basis and premise of scientific and effective prevention and control of VOCs pollution.In this paper,research progress on the monitoring of VOCs is introduced systemically,and main monitoring and evaluation methods of atmospheric VOCs are explored from monitoring analysis method,chemical reaction activity and health risk assessment.Moreover,concentration characteristics and source apportionment of VOCs in the regions at home and abroad that have carried out VOCs research work are compared and summarized.The research could provide reference for source apportionment of VOCs in other cities of China.

Establishment and Evaluation of a Method for Analyzing Atmospheric Volatile Organic Compounds

An automated cumulative sampling system and a method that combines a two-step cryo-concentrated system and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry （CCS-GC/MS） are introduced. The method is evaluated by a set of special experiments and the results are presented. The lowest measurement detection limit was expanded from 10^-6 nmol mol^-1 to 10^-12 nmol mol^-1 by using CCS-GC/MS instead of the simpler method of gas chromatography/mass spectrometry （GC/MS）, with the average responsible factor of 39 object compounds being 2.9 × 10^-12. When the volume of air sample reached 1000 cm^3, the lowest detection limit reached up to 7 × 10^-12-40 × 10^-12 nmol mol^-1. The CCS-GC/MS method can potentially identify all objective chemical species in an atmospheric sample, with an average 2.5 s bias error of retention time for 39 gas chromatography （GC） peaks. Within the range 0-400×10^-9 nmol mol^-1, the concentration of 39 kinds of objective compounds can be individually calculated very accurately by a standard curve [average r^2 （coefficient of determination） value of above 0.99]. The recovery efficiency was 88%-111%, with an average of 100.8% ±5.6%. The bias error of precision was 2%-14%, with an average of 6.6%.

Graphene Based Electrochemical Sensor for the Detection of Volatile Organic Compounds

Many household consumables contain volatile organic compounds(VOCs)as the active ingredient.Long term exposure to VOCs could cause various health problems,especially to the respiratory system.Graphene has attracted a lot of attention recently for its potential to be used as sensing material for VOCs.In this project we have constructed graphene/PVA composite based gas sensors for VOC detection.It was perceived that the polymer could introduce better selectivity to the sensor.Results suggest that the proposed sensor is highly sensitive to low molecular weight VOCs and that the manner in which the sensor respond to the vapour depends on the polarity or hydrophobicity of the vapour.

Isolation and Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds-Degrading <i>Bacillus</i>Strains from Loess

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are harmful to human health and the environment. Recently, loess (Hwangtoh) was used as an eco-friendly interior paint formulation in Korea. It is used even more commonly as a filter carrier to remove VOCs. In this study, we isolated Bacillus strains from a loess filter. The strains that were tolerant to VOCs were labeled according to the series VOC01 to VOC35. Four strains—VOC03, VOC11, VOC18, and VOC30—were investigated for their ability to degrade cyclohexane and toluene. Strain VOC18 best degraded both VOCs, whereas VOC03 demonstrated no ability to degrade VOCs. In keeping with this, VOC18 grew best on cyclohexane or toluene as the sole carbon source. The strains were identified by their physiochemical and phylogenetic characteristics. Strain VOC18 was determined as a strain of Bacillus cereus;VOC11 and VOC30 were determined as differentiated strains of B. thuringiensis. Strain VOC03, which demonstrated high tolerance but no ability to degrade VOCs, was identified as a strain of B. megaterium.

Influence of Reactive Volatile Organic Compounds on Ozone Production in Houston-Galveston-Brazoria Area

Secondary pollutant ozone (O3) formation in a particular area is often influenced by various factors. Source of emissions is one of the factors. In south east Texas, Houston-Galveston-Brazoria (HGB) is a marginal non-attainment area for ozone (O3). A summer episode of May 28 to July 2, 2006 is simulated using Comprehensive Air Quality Model with extensions (CAMx). During this period O3 concentration in HGB often exceeds the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) 0.075 ppm of average 8 hour O3 concentration. HGB area has numerous point sources. Various studies found that some specific volatile organic compounds are very reactive in atmosphere. The objective of this study is to analyze the influence of volatile organic compounds present in point source emissions on the air quality of HGB area. For this purpose ozone sensitivity for HGB area is analyzed by the ratio of hydrogen peroxides (H2O2) to nitric acid (HNO3). HGB area is found NOx limited but reactive VOCs are found to be influential too. From (1-4 June, 2006) maximum O3 concentration was found on weekend, June 3. VOCs such as Acetaldehyde (ALD2), Formaldehyde (FORM) and Alkane (ETHA) showed good correlation with O3 concentrations on that day. In addition, Peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) formation was found correlated to higher ozone production. Criteria pollutant Sulfur dioxide (SO2) was found to influence the ALD2 and ETHA concentrations, and thus indirectly influenced O3 production.

胶黏剂产品中VOCs含量与类别的检测方法

可靠、高效的检测方法,能够准确测定胶黏剂产品中挥发性有机化合物(VOCs)的含量及类别,进而为胶黏剂产品生产提供参考,不断提升胶黏剂产品的环保安全性。一般采用气相色谱法、气相色谱-检测器联用法、气相色谱-质谱法,通过优化顶空条件、色谱柱选择和质谱参数,实现对目标VOCs的高灵敏度、高选择性检测。这些方法能够有效分离和定量分析胶黏剂产品中的多种VOCs,包括烷烃、烯烃、芳香烃、醛类、酮类等,获得了VOCs含量和类别分布的详细数据,为胶黏剂产品中VOCs含量和类别的检测提供了一种可靠、高效的解决方案,可用于评估胶黏剂产品的环境友好性,并为制定相关标准和法规提供技术支持。

添加剂对堆肥过程中挥发性有机物(VOCs)的减排效果

为明确添加剂对堆肥挥发性有机物(Volatile organic compounds,VOCs)排放的减排效果和影响因素,通过文献筛选出吸附类添加剂(活性炭和沸石)与有机酸类添加剂(柠檬酸和草酸)开展实验研究。在鸡粪-玉米秸秆堆肥实验中,设置5个处理,分别为对照(CK)、添加活性炭、添加沸石、添加柠檬酸和添加草酸处理。研究对象包括115种VOCs、三甲胺和6种含硫有机挥发气体(二甲硫醚、二甲基二硫醚、二甲基三硫醚、甲硫醇、乙硫醇、乙硫醚)。结果表明:在28 d的好氧发酵中,所有处理均达到50℃并维持7 d,满足无害化标准。检出110种VOCs、三甲胺和3种含硫有机挥发气体(二甲硫醚、二甲基二硫醚,二甲基三硫醚)。VOCs的排放集中在前9 d,在第3天时VOCs达到峰值。5个处理在堆肥第3天检测到的VOCs浓度范围为169.22~548.26 mg·m^(-3)。4种添加剂对各类VOCs均有减排效果。在第3天,活性炭、沸石、柠檬酸和草酸对烷烃类的减排效率分别为79%、26%、77%和46%,对卤烃类的减排效率分别为96%、38%、93%和97%,对芳香烃类的减排效率分别为28%、11%、24%和53%。从堆肥第6天开始只有沸石对各类VOCs有减排效果,最高减排效率为30%。针对含硫有机挥发气体减排,减排效果依次是草酸>柠檬酸>沸石>活性炭。4种添加剂对含硫有机挥发气体均有减排效果,但是对三甲胺没有减排效果。综合堆肥前9 d VOCs的减排情况,4种添加剂中沸石对各类VOCs减排效果最好。堆肥过程中添加沸石有利于VOCs和其他气体的协同减排,并且对土壤和农作物不存在风险,所以沸石在堆肥工程中有广阔的应用前景。