Testing for PCBs and Pesticides – Another Impinger Method Bites the Dust
Ohio Lumex has been on a mission to improve Biogas/RNG sampling and analysis for the industry, including:
Simplifying sampling
Improving sample stability
Improving turnaround times
Improving sensitivity and accuracy
Eliminating hazardous shipping requirements
Reducing cost
We previously reported the successful development of our new Metals Sorbent Trap that will replace the complex and cumbersome EPA Method 29 setup of sample gas bubbling through a set of three impingers full of a hazardous mixture of nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide, all sitting in an ice bath, haphazardly perched on an upgrade skid in the middle of nowhere.
Another cumbersome impinger method will bite the dust as Ohio Lumex is now offering PCBs and Pesticides Sorbent Traps. Like all of our sorbent traps, the PCBs and Pesticides Sorbent Traps have the following benefits:
Small and lightweight
Easy to use
Do not require additional setup
Can be ordered for next-day delivery
No hazardous shipping is required
Lower cost
The PCBs and Pesticides Sorbent Trap is just another example of Ohio Lumex’s ongoing effort to offer new and improved methods for this industry, leading to easier sampling, faster analysis, and improved sensitivity and accuracy.
EPA Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS)
The talk in the industry these days surrounds the EPA Renewable Fuel Standard, or RFS, published July 12, 2023, with corrections dated August 3, 2023. For RNG producers, in addition to complying with the gas quality specifications required by natural gas pipelines, the EPA has codified the following standards for biogas and RNG measurement that they will require for reporting:
Standard | Measurement |
EPA Method 3C | How to measure methane |
ASTM D3588 | How to calculate heating value and relative density |
ASTM D5504 | How to measure H2S and other sulfur compounds |
ASTM D6866 | How to measure biogenic carbon |
ASTM D8230 | How to measure siloxanes |
ASTM D4888 | How to measure moisture content |
While we can debate whether these are the optimal methods, and if the deadlines will be pushed back, you can rest assured that as your one-stop-shop for biogas/RNG gas analysis, Ohio Lumex will be ready to support you as the rule is currently written, including providing the required Certificates of Analysis (COA) and Summary Tables.