ASE is an extraction technique that utilizes elevated temperature and pressure to expedite the removal of analytes from various matrices. It has been accepted by the U.S. EPA as Method 3545 for environmental samples, and it has been applied to other sample extraction areas. The procedures described in this application note apply to the determination of fat content in various solid or semisolid foods such as snack foods and dog biscuits.

Compounds used in high explosives may be toxic, carcinogenic, and are found on the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) list. These compounds and their metabolites are monitored in soils and ground waters to ensure compliance with U.S. EPA regulations. This application note reports on the use of ASE for the extraction of explosive compounds such as HMX, RDX, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), and some of their known metabolites from soils.

Underground storage tanks containing hydrocarbon-based fuels are found worldwide. Many of these tanks have leaks, allowing gasoline, diesel, oil, or other hydrocarbon materials to contaminate the surrounding soil. Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE) is an innovative sample preparation technique to achieve fast and efficient removal of analytes of interest from various matrices. This application note reports on the use of ASE for the extraction of diesel range organics (DRO), waste oil organics (WOO), and total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH, the sum of DRO and WOO) from soils.

Accelerated solvent extraction is an extraction method that significantly streamlines sample preparation. The production of oil from oilseeds is an important business, and agronomists are continuing to investigate ways to improve the oil output of the seeds as well as ways to control the composition of the oil itself. The procedures described in this application note apply to the determination of oil content in oilseeds. The oil content is determined by collecting the extracts in preweighed vials, evaporating the solvent with a nitrogen stream and reweighing the vials.

The use of ASE in the extraction of OPP compounds from solid wastes is a more convenient, faster, and less solvent-intensive method than previously available. OPP recoveries by ASE are equivalent to recoveries from Soxhlet and other methods. ASE also avoids the problem of multiple washing procedures associated with sonication. This method is applicable to the extraction of water-insoluble or slightly water-soluble organophosphorus pesticides in preparation for gas chromatographic measurements. This method is applicable to soils, solid wastes, and sediments containing 250–2500 μg/kg of OPPs.