Why VOCs deserve a closer look
Volatile organic compounds are everywhere: benzene and other aromatics from road traffic, chlorinated compounds from industry, and isoprene and monoterpenes released by trees and plants. There are hundreds of them, and together they play a key role in forming ground-level ozone and particulate matter. Studies estimate that around 60% of secondary organic aerosol originates from VOCs.
Regulation is following the science. The revised EU Ambient Air Quality Directive (EU) 2024/2881 extends the list of VOCs recommended for measurement. Alongside familiar compounds such as benzene, toluene, n-heptane, iso-octane and the xylenes, it now includes ethylbenzene, MEK and MVK, and a whole group of biogenic monoterpenes: α- and β-pinene, limonene, β-myrcene, camphene, Δ3-carene, p-cymene and 1,8-cineol (eucalyptol).
The classic trade-off: accurate or flexible
Until now, VOC monitoring usually meant choosing between two worlds:
- Online GC-FID, GC-MS or lab analysis: highly accurate, but heavy, fixed and time-consuming.
- Total VOC meters and sensors: flexible and quick, but not sensitive or selective enough to tell individual compounds apart.
Add to that the reality of the field. Pollution events are often unpredictable, and VOCs react with ozone, humidity and temperature, so a sample transported to the lab is not always the sample you took.
Meet the µ-airTOXIC
Chromatotec, the French gas chromatography specialist with 40 years of experience in automatic GC solutions, brings its proven technology to the field. The µ-airTOXIC is the first portable trap GC-PID for ultra-trace VOC analysis in ambient air: laboratory-grade performance in a rugged case of less than 6 kg.
It uses the same analytical components and method as Chromatotec’s rack-mounted airTOXIC, which is certified to EN 14662-3 (QAL 1) and selected by the US EPA. In short: a certified pedigree, now with a handle.
- Ready in about 2 minutes after start-up
- Wireless control from a tablet, laptop or smartphone via Wi-Fi, with the embedded Vistachrom Lite software
- Analysis on the spot, so results are not affected by sample transport, humidity or ozone
- Rugged tablet included, with shock protection, shoulder strap and up to 14 hours of battery life
Performance you can rely on
The combination of an embedded pre-concentration trap, a temperature-gradient GC oven with a metal capillary column, and a heated 10.6 eV PID delivers results that used to require a lab:
- Detection limit for benzene below 10 ppt (LOQ 8.9 ppt)
- Detection limit for monoterpenes below 25 ppt
- Benzene retention time RSD below 0.4%
- 24-hour repeatability of 1.28% on a BTEX standard
- Excellent separation, from light VOCs up to heavy compounds such as naphthalene
The system has been validated against PTR-MS and is used in the European ACTRIS research network for biogenic VOC monitoring.
One analyser, many methods
Multiple methods can be installed on the same instrument, so one µ-airTOXIC can cover several applications:
- Benzene only
- BTEX in 10, 15 or 30 minutes
- C6–C12 US EPA PAMS list in 15, 30 or 60 minutes
- C6–C12 EU Directive list in 15, 30 or 60 minutes
- Biogenic VOCs in 15, 30 or 60 minutes
- Custom compound lists on request
Each method can hold up to 255 substances. Advanced users can fine-tune column head pressure, oven temperature programme and cycle time, and chromatograms are integrated automatically.
Seen in the field: a night of wildfire smoke
During a wildfire in July 2026, a µ-airTOXIC measured ambient air through the night. The trend data shows exactly why ppt-level sensitivity matters: benzene moved between 0.01 and 1.7 ppb, toluene between 0.10 and 0.75 ppb, and α-pinene between 0.03 and 0.41 ppb, with clear peaks as the smoke plume passed. That level of detail lets you see what is happening, when, and where it comes from.
Built for long days and low running costs
- Gas autonomy: up to 28 hours on the internal nitrogen tank at 15 barg, and refilling from an external 110 L cylinder takes less than a minute. A high-pressure option (up to 150 barg) extends autonomy even further.
- Battery autonomy: 4 to 8 hours, depending on configuration and cycle time.
- Consumables: electricity and nitrogen. That’s it.
- Long-life components: a pre-concentration trap that lasts more than two years in continuous operation and an unbreakable metal capillary column with a lifetime of over ten years.
- Simple maintenance: a yearly preventive maintenance kit, with the PID lamp and trap on a two- and three-year cycle.
Optional extras include a wheeled hard case for transport and a portable calibration oven with certified permeation tubes.
Where the µ-airTOXIC makes a difference
From routine monitoring to emergency response:
- Ambient air quality networks: urban and industrial stations, benzene compliance and the new EU Directive VOC list
- Industrial fence-line monitoring: petrochemical, refinery and chemical sites, leak detection and hotspot localisation
- Site surveys and remediation: pre- and post-clean-up assessment, soil vapour intrusion, brownfields and former gasworks
- Indoor air quality: workplace exposure assessment and indoor/outdoor source identification
- Emergency response: rapid deployment after incidents, fires and odour complaints
- Campaigns and studies: screening surveys, short-term measurement campaigns and validation of fixed networks
That makes it a strong fit for environmental agencies, industrial HSE departments, consultancies and testing labs, research institutes and universities, occupational health services, and emergency services such as fire brigades.
See it for yourself
At AAVOS, we help Benelux customers build complete, turn-key air monitoring solutions, from the analyser to the data. Curious how the µ-airTOXIC fits your monitoring programme or your next measurement campaign? Get in touch with our team for more information or a demonstration.