Consumer Products Laboratory SOPs & Test Methods

CARB Method 310 applies to the determination of the percent of weight of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in consumer products, antiperspirant and deodorant products, and aerosol coatings products, as defined in Title 17, California Code of Regulations, Sections 94500 et. seq. The method determines the VOC content in a product and the presence of any compounds prohibited by CARB regulations ("prohibited compounds"). Components of the product that do not meet the definition of a VOC or are exempted by CARB regulations for a specific product category ("exempt compounds") are subtracted from the total volatile material to determine the final VOC content for the product.

Below are the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) which CARB staff uses to implement Method 310. Mention of any trade name or commercial product in Method 310 or the SOPs does not constitute endorsement or recommendation of this product by CARB.

Consumer Products Laboratory SOPs

SOP-Revision Number	Standard Operating Procedure Title	Effective Date
SAS01-1.7	Standard Operating Procedure for the Total Volatile Measurement of Consumer Products	10/24/18
SAS02-2.2	Standard Operating Procedure for the Measurement of Ammonium Ion in Aqueous Consumer Products Using Ion Chromatography	08/18/10
SAS03-3.0	Standard Operating Procedure for the Karl Fischer (KF) Determination of Water with KF Drying Oven in Consumer Products	09/19/12
SAS04-1.5	Standard Operating Procedure for Water Determination in Consumer Products Using Gas Chromatography	08/19/10
SAS05-3.2	Standard Operating Procedure for the Determination of Compounds in Aerosol Consumer Product Propellant by Gas Chromatography	08/18/10
SAS06-1.4	Procedure for the Qualitative Determination of Compounds in Consumer Products by Headspace Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry	08/23/10
SAS07-1.9	Standard Operating Procedure for the Determination of Exempt and Non-Exempt Compounds Generally Found in Consumer Products by Gas Chromatography - FID	08/28/12
SAS09-1.4	Standard Operating Procedure for the Determination of Boiling Point Distribution in Consumer Products by Gas Chromatography	08/17/10
SAS12-0.0	Standard Operating Procedure for the Determination of Aromatic Compound Content in Multi-Purpose Solvent and Paint Thinner Products	01/01/12
SAS13-0.0	Standard Operating Procedure for Consumer Product Sample Batch Management and Reporting	08/05/19
SAS14-0.0	Standard Operating Procedure for Consumer Product Sample Preparation	08/05/19
SAS15-0.0	Standard Operating Procedure for the Determination of Compounds in Aerosol Coating Consumer Products Using Gas Chromatography	08/05/19

Additional Information

CARB Method 310 (updated version May 25, 2018)
Charcoal Lighter test procedure