Multi-component trace analysis of organic xenobiotics in surface water containing suspended particular matter by solid phase extraction/gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

Suspended particulate matter (SPM) often disturbs the analysis of surface water by conventional methods, such as liquid–liquid extraction (LLE) or solid phase extraction (SPE), caused by insufficient extraction or by plugging. Water and SPM are therefore often separately analysed, which is associated with high expenditure of time, work and costs. Hence, SPM is partly ignored, if the fraction of sorptively bound analytes is small compared to the total analyte concentration. However, the European Water Framework Directive (WFD, Directive 2000/60/EC) requires explicitly an investigation of the whole water sample including SPM, because many priority and priority hazardous substances can sorb substantially to SPM. Therefore, an SPE disk based method was developed for the determination of 54 priority and priority hazardous pollutants including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), organic chlorinated pesticides (OCP) and other pesticides in surface water containing SPM. The developed SPE disk method allows analysis of 1 L surface water containing up to 1000 mg SPM without prior separation of SPM in about 2 h including gas chromatography–mass (GC–MS) spectrometry analysis. The limits of quantification vary in a range of 0.8 to 38 ng/L.

► A method for analysis of 54 priority pollutants of the WFD was developed.
► Detection limits were in the low ng/L range fulfilling the requirements of the WFD.
► Samples with suspended particular matter up to 1 g/L were analysed in one step.
► The method is superior to standard liquid–liquid extraction and Soxhlet extraction.