Astromat

This study applies gas chromatography–isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS) to analyze volatile and pyrolysis-derived organic compounds released from activated-carbon filter sample OREX-103001-13. These samples represent processed filter materials collected for assessment of organic contamination backgrounds. Each sample was analyzed using thermal desorption at 200 C and pyrolysis at 600 C to obtain the Hydrogen isotope signature of weakly bound volatiles and thermally generated decomposition products. Sample preparation involved isolating activated-carbon fragments, weighing approximately 2 mg, and loading them into prebaked quartz tubes packed with combusted quartz wool. No GC-MS analysis were done for these samples due to limited sample quantity, but the identification was done by previous filter samples analysis using GC-MS and GC-C-IRMS. The thermal desorption runs primarily released low-molecular-weight hydrocarbons and oxygenated volatiles (e.g, isopropanol, acetone, and phenol), with isotopoe varying between -82 permil (isopropanol) to +577 permil (undentified hydrocarbon). While pyrolysis generated a broader suite of decomposition products, including small hydrocarbons, aromatics, and nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygenbearing compounds, with carbon isotope measurements varying between -91 permil (undefined compound) to +62 permil (undefined compound).