Method for determination of formaldehyde in air in the pptv-range by HPLC after extraction as 2,4-dinitrophenyl-hydrazone

The derivatization of formaldehyde with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine and the extraction of the product formalhydrazone is studied. The determination is carried out by HPLC. Applying a cryogenic sampling technique and a sampling volume of 300l of air the detection limit of formaldehyde in air is 30 pptv and this is suitable for measurements of formaldehyde in the atmosphere. (IFU)