Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are numerous, varied, and ubiquitous, including both human-made and naturally occurring chemical compounds. Some VOCs are dangerous to human health and harmful to the environment. VOCs can be released when handling common workplace materials such as solvents, paints, sealants, and adhesives. Anthropogenic VOCs are regulated by law, especially indoors, where concentrations are the highest. Air quality monitoring with accurate, real-time detection is important for ensuring safe working conditions.

Currently, four-gas monitors are commonly used for real-time air monitoring in industry. These monitors typically only measure oxygen, the lower explosive limit of combustible gases, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen sulfide. As a result, they fail to detect many common toxic gases, such as VOCs, that are common constituents or by-products of many industrial processes. This causes employees to be often under-protected, which can have negative health consequences, or over-protected, which can limit productivity.

The NovaTest P100 and P300 can rapidly sample and analyze ambient air in any location, making them useful devices for emissions testing and leak detection. The device samples from the ambient air without any additional equipment or sample preparation required. The compact design allows them to conveniently test the air in any location inaccessible to a traditional benchtop devices, while they are yet capable of detecting a wide range of compounds with high sensitivity in a single test, and the system automatically generates an instant report with calculated results.