Steroid hormones, inorganic ions and botrydial in drinking water. Determination with capillary electrophoresis and liquid chromatography-orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry

Steroid hormones, botrydial, and inorganic ions were studied from cold and hot tap water samples with capillary electrophoresis techniques using UV detection. Identification of the steroids and botrydial was made with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled to electrospray ionization orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry. Solid phase extraction with nonpolar and ion-exchange sorbents was needed to enrich the compounds for CE and UHPLC studies. The steroids identified from the drinking water samples were estradiol glucoside, androstenedione, testosterone, and progesterone. However, only progesterone could be quantified in both cold and hot tap water samples from Helsinki households. Its concentration varied from 0.031 ng/L to 0.135 ng/L and from 0.054 ng/L to 0.191 ng/L, respectively. Chloride and nitrate amounts were 25 mg/L. Calcium, potassium, magnesium, and sodium were 20, 1, 1, and 17 mg/L at the highest, respectively. Copper, iron, sulphate, and ammonium were below the methods concentration limits. Botrydial from Botrytis cinerea mould was identified in all drinking waters. In both cold and hot tap waters its concentration was 861-3900% higher than in a drilled well water that was also used as the household tap water. The mould was also confirmed by identification of its metabolite abscisic acid.