Method for analysis of 68 organic contaminants in food contact paper using gas and liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry

•We developed a method for simultaneous analysis of 68 contaminants in paper.•All analytes were co-isolated using a QuEChERS-based extraction process.•GC-MS/MS and HPLC-MS/MS enabled selective detection with good LOQs.•Real samples contained complex mixtures of contaminants.

Food contact materials (FCMs) have been reported as a source of various xenobiotics. This study investigates the possibility of simultaneous analysis of 68 potential contaminants in paper FCMs, specifically phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, photoinitiators, bisphenols, and polyfluorinated compounds. Target compounds were co-isolated using a technique based on ultrasonic extraction by mixture of acetonitrile and water followed by QuEChERS-like liquid-liquid partition in the presence of inorganic salts. Resulting extracts were analyzed using gas and high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS, HPLC-MS/MS). Acceptable recoveries (70-120%) and RSDs (<20%) were achieved for most of the analytes at spiking levels of 0.05, 0.2 and 1 mg/kg. LOQs ranged from 0.0013 to 0.22 mg/kg. The proposed method was successfully applied to analysis of 15 real samples. Complex mixtures of contaminants reaching levels up to 48 mg/kg were identified in the samples.