🌿 Styrene in workplace air — activated charcoal, toluene extraction and gas chromatography, PN-Z-04152-02

Environment PN-86/Z-04152/02

Overview

WHAT THE STANDARD COVERS. The scope from the PKN catalogue card, quoted in full: "The method consists in adsorption of styrene vapour on activated charcoal, its extraction with toluene and chromatographic analysis of the resulting solution. The quantification limit of the method is 12.5 mg per 1 cubic metre of air." The title adds: gas chromatography "with sample enrichment". The solvent here is toluene; in the standards on kerosene, n-hexane and trimethylbenzene described in this knowledge base it is carbon disulphide.

STATUS (state of the card on 28 September 2026). The card carries the heading "Withdrawn" and the row "Date of withdrawal: 18-12-2012"; there are no "Superseded by" and "Supersedes" fields. Edition: published 25-02-1986, 3 pages, KT 159 (Chemical and Dust Hazards in the Working Environment), ICS 13.040.30. Whether another, valid document for styrene stands in the PKN catalogue today — WE HAVE NOT ESTABLISHED. In the accreditation scopes four other laboratories determine styrene in workplace air according to a method published in the quarterly "Podstawy i Metody Oceny Środowiska Pracy" 2007, No 1(51), pp. 141–147 (AB 300, AB 565, AB 1226, AB 1854; at AB 1226 the item is suspended at the laboratory’s request until 7 December 2026); we did not compare its content with the standard. AB 935 cites for styrene in workplace air, besides this standard, also PN-Z-04113-11:1994 (scope issue 21 of 4 September 2025, p. 4/26) — according to the PKN card a standard on determining acrylates and methacrylates in the air of rooms intended for permanent human occupancy, withdrawn on 27-10-2020; neither its title nor its "Scope" field mentions styrene. Why it stands next to styrene — WE HAVE NOT ESTABLISHED.

THE LIMIT VALUE. The Polish NDS list as worded by the regulation of 26 March 2026 (Journal of Laws 2026, item 447), item 500 "Styren" (styrene) [100-42-5]: NDS 50 mg/m³, NDSCh 100 mg/m³, no "skin" notation. The quantification limit from the card — 12.5 mg/m³ — is one quarter of the NDS and one eighth of the NDSCh.

HOW MANY LABORATORIES AND IN WHAT FORM (copy of the accreditation scope database, data up to 17 September 2026, read on 28 September 2026). All records of number 04152 with sheet 02: 19 entries at 16 laboratories. Four forms: "PN-86/Z-04152/02" — 8 laboratories, "PN-Z-04152-02:1986" — 5, "PN-86/Z-04152.02" (with a dot) — 3, "PN-86-Z-04152/02" — 1 (AB 1642); AB 882 uses the first two. The "Laboratories" tab searches for records BEGINNING with "PN-86/Z-04152/02" and will show 8 laboratories in 9 entries; it will not see the other eight: AB 562, AB 935, AB 940, AB 1168 (newer designation scheme), AB 522, AB 632, AB 746 (form with a dot) and AB 1642. SUSPENSION: in the current PCA scope of AB 522 (issue 26 of 18 August 2026) both items of this standard are suspended at the laboratory’s request from 18 August 2026 to 14 February 2027 (footnote "*)" at items set in bold italics; read on 29 September 2026). The numbers above include them.

TECHNIQUE AND LIMITS IN THE SCOPES. Gas chromatography with a flame ionisation detector (GC-FID) is recorded by 15 laboratories; with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) — by AB 882 (alongside GC-FID) and AB 1207 (exclusively). A range in mg/m³ is given by 16 laboratories (including AB 886 — 0.17–1000 mg/m³ according to PCA scope issue 26 of 12 February 2026; in our copy this range was not preserved), and ALL declare a lower limit below the card's 12.5 mg/m³: from 0.01 mg/m³ (AB 1642) and 0.1 mg/m³ (AB 935) to 5 mg/m³ (AB 562, AB 632). Upper limits: from 100 mg/m³ (AB 935) to 4000 mg/m³ (AB 562). Six laboratories cite the standard together with their own procedure or instruction (AB 522, AB 562, AB 882, AB 886, AB 940, AB 1207). What the limits lower than the card's value result from — WE HAVE NOT ESTABLISHED; a result below 12.5 mg/m³ described only by the number of the standard does not show how the laboratory went below its quantification limit.

WHAT WE DO NOT GIVE. We did not have the text of the standard — PKN supplies it for a fee (3 pages). We do not give the enrichment technique, the amount of activated charcoal, the air volume, the chromatographic conditions, the formula or the precision.

Method principle

According to the card: styrene vapour from workplace air is adsorbed on activated charcoal, styrene is extracted with toluene, and the resulting solution is analysed by gas chromatography (title: "with sample enrichment"). Quantification limit of the method according to the card: 12.5 mg/m³. The result is assessed against the NDS of 50 mg/m³ and NDSCh of 100 mg/m³. We DO NOT GIVE the sampling and chromatographic conditions — we did not have the text of the standard.

Applications

• Measurements of styrene in workplace air — assessment against NDS 50 mg/m³ and NDSCh 100 mg/m³ (Journal of Laws 2026, item 447, item 500 of the list)
• In accreditation scopes the result as a concentration in mg/m³ (16 laboratories) and as the mass of styrene in the sample (11)

Key parameters

Standard

Standard number

PN-Z-04152-02:1986 (wersja polska)

Title (PL)

Ochrona czystości powietrza — Badania zawartości styrenu — Oznaczanie styrenu na stanowiskach pracy metodą chromatografii gazowej z wzbogacaniem próbki

Title (EN)

Air purity protection — Tests for styrene content — Determination of styrene at workplaces by gas chromatography with sample enrichment

Step-by-step procedure

1. Status of the document

   PKN card: standard withdrawn on 18-12-2012, no "Superseded by" field (state of the card on 28 September 2026). In the report give the full designation with the year: PN-Z-04152-02:1986.

2. Air sampling

   Styrene vapour is adsorbed on activated charcoal. Volume and flow rate NOT GIVEN.

3. Extraction

   Styrene is extracted from the activated charcoal with toluene.

4. Chromatographic determination

   The solution is analysed by gas chromatography. Conditions NOT GIVEN.

5. Result and assessment

   The concentration in mg/m³ is compared with NDS 50 mg/m³ and NDSCh 100 mg/m³. A result below 12.5 mg/m³ lies below the quantification limit given on the card.

Required equipment and apparatus

Reagents, media and consumables

Health and safety (OHS)

• Toluene and styrene are flammable and harmful — solutions are prepared in a fume cupboard, away from ignition sources; safety data sheets apply
• TECHNICAL NOTE: the quantification limit from the card (12.5 mg/m³) is one quarter of the styrene NDS; the lower limits declared in the scopes do not follow from the card

Frequently asked questions