Dräger Phosphine PH3 Detector Tubes

Which Range Should I Choose?

Low Range — Dräger Phosphine 0.1/c (order no. 8103711)
0.1–1 ppm at 3 strokes, or 0.5–3 ppm at 1 stroke. The 3-stroke method is the only method on this page that reads below 0.5 ppm; no tube on this page reads below 0.1 ppm. Color change: yellow to red. Permissible ambient conditions (Dräger): 2 to 40 °C, humidity max. 40 mg H₂O/L.

High Range — Dräger Phosphine 50/a (order no. CH21201)
Standard measuring range 50–1,000 ppm at 3 strokes. Dräger also documents a measuring-range extension of 15–300 ppm at 10 pump strokes. When using this extension, multiply the indicated scale value by 0.3. For example, an indicated scale value of 200 at 10 strokes is 200 × 0.3 = 60 ppm; reading the scale directly would overstate the concentration about 3.3 times. Color change: yellow to brown-black. Permissible ambient conditions (Dräger): 0 to 50 °C, humidity less than 40 mg H₂O/L.

Very High Range — Dräger Phosphine 25/a (order no. 8101621)
25–900 ppm at 10 strokes, or 200–10,000 ppm at 1 stroke. The 1-stroke method extends to 10,000 ppm, above the High Range tube’s 1,000 ppm upper limit. These are two separate calibrated methods, not one continuous range. Color change: yellow to dark brown. Permissible ambient conditions (Dräger): 0 to 40 °C, humidity less than 30 mg H₂O/L.

Specifications

• Measures: Phosphine (PH₃) in air
• Tubes per box: 10 single-use glass tubes
• Reading: Direct colorimetric — no batteries or user calibration
• Pump: Compatible Dräger tube pumps, including the accuro manual bellows pump and the X-act 5000 automatic tube pump
• Method: Each tube lists two stroke methods; on the High Range tube, the 10-stroke method is a measuring-range extension read at scale × 0.3. Use only a method printed in that tube’s instructions
• Standard deviation (Dräger): ±10 to 15 % for each of the three tubes, within that tube’s permissible ambient conditions

Use Notes

Break both tube ends, insert the tube into the pump as shown in the tube instructions, and complete the stated number of strokes for the method you are using. Read the result against the scale printed on the tube; for the High Range tube’s 10-stroke extension, multiply the indicated scale value by 0.3. Use only the measurement method and stroke count stated for the tube you have selected — a stroke count taken from a different tube or a different method will not give a valid reading.

Use each tube only within its permissible ambient conditions, and apply any correction given in that tube’s instructions. The tubes are not specific to phosphine: all three also indicate arsine; the Low Range tube also indicates hydrogen sulfide, and the High and Very High Range tubes also indicate stibine. Dräger states that these gases are indicated with different sensitivities (lower sensitivities on the Very High Range tube). On the Low Range tube, sulfur dioxide above 6 ppm or hydrogen chloride above 15 ppm gives high readings, and ammonia above 100 ppm gives low readings. A phosphine reading does not rule out other gases.

The current fumigant label and applicator manual, your Fumigation Management Plan, site requirements and any applicable regulations or exposure-monitoring requirements govern the monitoring instrument, sampling locations and timing, and the concentration limits that apply to aeration, worker exposure and re-entry. Use these tubes only where the tube, its range and its stroke method meet those requirements, and follow the instructions supplied with the Dräger tube and pump.

Storage & Expiry

Store the tubes within the limits printed on the package. Do not use tubes after the expiration date printed on the box or tube. Dräger states that used or expired tubes must not be disposed of in domestic waste.