VDA 278 Standard for Thermal Desorption of Organic Emissions

EUROLAB laboratory provides testing services within the scope of VDA 278 standard. This standard uses an analysis according to VDA 278 to characterize non-metallic automotive materials for volatile (VOC) and condensable (FOG) emissions. Substances released from a heated component are separated by gas chromatography and identified using mass spectra (GC/MS).

VDA 278 is an internationally accepted, standardized test procedure for non-metallic materials. It is used to test emissions or compounds of high, medium and low volatility. VDA 278 measures the presence of volatile compounds present in the test material. These analyzes are represented by the sum of VOCs for high and medium volatility compounds and the sum of FOG for low volatility compounds. The results also give a breakdown of each compound present as well as its mass of interest.

In general, the VDA 278 method is mainly used in the automotive industry, but can also be applied to other industries for the evaluation of VOCs and FOGs.

VDA 278 Test Scope

Substances released from a heated component are separated by gas chromatography and identified using mass spectra (GC/MS). This allows not only to determine the total emission, but also to evaluate and quantify the individual components. An analysis according to VDA 278 enables the assessment of the effects of emissions and a targeted improvement of a product based on its emission behavior.

The VDA 278 method, which is widely used for the determination of organic emissions from vehicle interior materials, is based on direct thermal extraction. When performing direct thermal extraction, the desorption temperature is the most critical method parameter, and even small changes result in large differences. As a result, temperature sensitivity must be tightly controlled and verified.

VDA 278 Test Procedure

The recently developed Temperature Validation Kit (GERSTEL TDS 3) for the Thermal Desorption System allows the user to achieve the smallest possible desorption tube temperature variation for the 90 °C and 120 °C setpoints. Verification is performed in the field at the customer's laboratory via direct temperature measurements at the sample location of the TDS in question. The procedure is performed using the gerstel maestro software feature "VDA 278 calibration". The TDS sample temperature is calibrated at 90 °C and 120 °C with the click of a mouse, resulting in a small deviation of ± 1.0 °C.

Eurolab can offer analysis performance by thermodesorption of organic emissions for the characterization of non-metallic materials for automobiles. The test is carried out by an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory recognized by the French Accreditation Committee.