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Technically Superior, Independent

State-of-the-Art Analytical Testing Facilities

Berkeley Analytical (BkA) maintains state-of-the-art environmental chamber testing facilities and GC/MS instrumentation.

We operate small-scale and mid-scale environmental chambers for product testing. These have been designed following ASTM Standards D5116 and D6670, respectively. Field and Laboratory Emission Cells (FLEC) and temperature programmable micro-scale chambers also are available. Micro-scale chambers have a variety of applications including odor investigations, rapid screening of product and material VOC emissions for quality control purposes and studies of semi-volatile organic compound (SVOC) emissions. We currently operate the following environmental chamber testing facilities:

  • 26 Small-scale chambers—67 L electro-polished stainless steel
  • 4 Mid-scale chambers—6 & 14 m3 with polished stainless steel inner surfaces
  • 2 Field and Laboratory Emission Cells—FLEC, Chematec
  • 2 Micro-chamber Thermal Extractor systems, Markes International

Chamber testing requires precise control of sampling events and environmental parameters. All of the flow rates for air inlet and gas sampling are regulated with electronic mass flow controllers, sampling events are electronically timed, and environmental data are continuously monitored and recorded. Our ISO/IEC 17025 accredited quality management system assures that flow rate, temperature, humidity, and other measurements are within specifications for reproducibility and accuracy.

Air samples for field studies and chamber testing are analyzed for VOCs using thermal desorption GC/MS instrumentation. Samples for formaldehyde and other aldehydes are collected using DNPH chemistry and analyzed by HPLC. Analyses of phthalate esters, flame retardants and other target SVOCs in products and in environmental samples such as air, surface wipes and dust are performed by GC/MS. Our analytical instrumentation currently consists of:

  • 5 Agilent single quadrupole GC/MSD systems
  • 2 Agilent Infinity® liquid chromatography systems
  • 2 Markes International automated multi-tube thermal desorption and sample recollection systems
  • Markes International Centri® system with multiple sampling modes for rapid and efficient extraction and enrichment of VOCs and SVOCs in a variety of sample matrices

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Inquiry Form

Please fill out the form to be contacted by a laboratory expert. Tell us as much as you can about your needs. We’ll promptly respond to your inquiry and answer your questions about all aspects of testing/analysis including pricing. If you prefer, call us at 1-510-236-2325, toll-free at 1-888-455-0999 or email info@berkeleyanalytical.com.

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