Simultaneous determination of trace amounts of sulphur hexafluoride and cyclic perfluorocarbons in reservoir samples by gas chromatography

Both sulphur hexafluoride and a group of compounds among the perfluorinated cyclic hydrocarbons: perfluorodimethyl cyclobutane, perfluoromethyl cyclopentane, perfluoromethyl cyclohexane and the 1,2- and 1,3-isomers of perfluordimethyl cyclohexane are well known to be good gas tracers, in various applications. Unfortunately different methods have been used for the analysis of SF6 and the perfluorocarbons. Therefore, in many cases, the analytical costs may have hindered the use of both SF6 and the perfluorocarbons in the same tracer experiments. The analytical method described in this paper enables the determination of both types of gas tracer in one single run. The new method has already replaced two former methods and was used to run the gas tracer analysis routinely, proving the reliability of the method.