Tests were performed to evaluate the accuracy, precision and response time of certain commercially available handheld toxic gas monitors. The tests were conducted by PNNL in the Chemical Chamber Test Facility for CH2MHill Hanford Company. The instruments were tested with a set of dilute test gases including ammonia, nitrous oxide, and a mixture of organic vapors (acetone, benzene, ethanol, hexane, toluene and xylene). The certified gases were diluted to concentrations that may be encountered in the outdoor environment above the underground tank farms containing radioactive waste at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hanford site, near Richland, Washington. The challenge concentrations are near the lower limits of instrument sensitivity and response time. The performance test simulations were designed to look at how the instruments respond to changes in test gas concentrations that are similar to field conditions.
Revised: January 26, 2005 |
Published: January 24, 2005