Hydrogen fluoride analyzer for gases and aerosols Original Research Article

Many fire suppression agents are currently used, and the replacement candidates for these agents contain fluorine atoms. When these agents are used to extinguish a fire, large quantities of hydrogen fluoride gas can be produced from the thermal degradation of fluorinated organic compounds. A real-time analyzer has been developed to measure exposure levels of hydrogen fluoride gas and aerosols during fire suppression tests. A vacuum pump pulls air through a continuous denuder, where the toxic gas and aerosols are extracted from the air into an aqueous trapping solution. The trapping solution then passes through a flow cell, where a fluoride ion-selective electrode measures the fluoride ion concentration. A solenoid pump moves the trapping solution and calibration standards through the analyzer. Once calibrated, the analyzer can generate a concentration profile of hydrogen fluoride versus time. This hydrogen fluoride analyzer is portable and can be calibrated in about 5 min. It provides rapid response to hydrogen fluoride gas and aerosols, over a detection range from 1 to 5000 mg/m3.