A method to determine organochlorine pollutants in pine needles is described. Fresh, whole needles have been extracted for 48 h in dichloromethane to obtain the epicuticular wax fraction. The remainder has been cut into small pieces and again extracted with dichloromethane to obtain the internal lipids. Prior to gas chromatography, both the wax and the internal lipid extracts have been fractionated on two columns: first a silica gel/silica gel : sulphuric acid 2 : 1 column with dichloromethane as eluent and then a nitrophenyl silica column with hexane as eluent. Three fractions have been collected, fraction 1 containing hexachlorobenzene (HCB), fraction 2 containing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)ethene (DDE), and fraction 3 containing the remaining, more polar, organochlorine pesticides. For some pine species, the nitrophenyl silica column has been combined with a short aminopropyl silica column to obtain chromatograms of the PCB fraction free from negative peaks. The precision is in the range of 4-12% relative standard deviation, and the overall recovery is around 65-90%.

The growth-dependent production of known and new potential tracer compounds for moulds of the genus Peniciflium on pine wood is shown. The analytical method used involves diffusive sampling by an adsorbent tube (Tenax-TA) , thermal desorption, gas chromatography and a mass selective detector. Mass spectra of identified and unidentified potential tracer compounds are presented. Identified compounds are l-Octene-3-01,2-Heptanone, 4 -Allylanisole and 3-Methyl-l-butanol. In addition, several other compounds were tentatively identified or recognized in different samples by their retention time and mass spectra. The microbiologically produced volatile organic compounds (MVOC) are produced during different time periods of the mould growth cycle. The impact of these results on screening measurements for houses with mould problems is discussed together with the applicability and need for new and more tracer compounds for mould growth in buildings.

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