Application Notes: Environmental

Analysis of chromium species is made challenging due to the nature of the element and diverse sample matrices

Disinfection by-products (DBP) are an ever-present nuisance in the efforts to purify drinking water, wastewater, and municipal waters from various sources. An emerging class of DBP compounds with health effects is nitrosamines which result from chloramination or chlorination if the water is nitrogen-rich. Five of these nitrosamines have been listed on the US EPA’s new Contaminant Candidate List (CCL-3). Of the nitrosamines, the most common and problematic is N-nitrosdimethylamine (NDMA). The maximum admissible levels set by the US EPA are 7 ng/L for NDMA and 2 ng/L for N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA).

Generally speaking, chromate - Cr(VI) - is classified as allergenic, carcinogenic, and extremely toxic and is subject to strict monitoring. Cr(VI) can occur in various concentrations in different areas, for example, drinking water, toys, or textile and leather products. Metrohm has developed ion chromatographic determination methods for determining Cr(VI) in various concentration ranges (ng/L to mg/L) with inline sample preparation techniques for various matrices. The method can be almost entirely automated. In the following application note, we present the analysis of hexavalent chromium in toys, leather, and drinking water.

Rigorous conditioning of sorbent tubes is an essential part of any sampling and analysis protocol. This application note will explore the cost savings and productivity enhancements that can be made by off-line conditioning, rather than on‑line with the thermal desorber itself. In particular, we will focus on the revenue resulting from running more analytical samples, the cost-effectiveness of increasing sample capacity by this approach, and the benefits that stem from using nitrogen rather than helium.

Used extensively from the 1940s through the 1960s, organochlorine pesticides are chlorinated hydrocarbons used in agriculture and mosquito control. The organochlorine pesticides accumulate in the environment, presenting an ongoing issue with adsorption and accumulation in the population as a result of ingestion.

This method increases sensitivity and reduces data acquisition time for a subset of pharmaceuticals and personal care products from the original EPA Method 1694 specifications.

Organochlorine pesticides are among the more notorious organic pollutants. Gaining wide spread attention into the latter part of the 20th century, and ultimately leading to their ban, OCPs remain with us as a legacy contaminant in the environment.

US EPA wastewater method 624 Purgeables was originally published as 40 CFR Part 136 Appendix A in the mid 1980s.

In recent years, the increasing cost and uncertain availability of helium have prompted many labs to explore the use of hydrogen as an alternate carrier gas.

Pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) are products used for personal health or cosmetic reasons.

Bruker Daltonics

UCT, LLC

Pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) are products used for personal health or cosmetic reasons.

This application describes a solid phase extraction (SPE) method for EPA method 8141B analytes, including organophosphorus compounds, and triazine herbicides in water.

Shimadzu Europa GmbH

Gas chromatography coupled to high resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC–HRT) was used to identify halogenated organic compounds based on their mass defects in fish tissue extracts.

US EPA method 529 is the procedure to determine explosives and related compounds in finished drinking water.

Chromium (Cr) is a metal with an interesting relationship to the environment. Whereas trivalent chromium (Cr(III)) is an essential nutrient, hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a poison to humans and aquatic life and poses serious environmental and ecological threats.

EPA 8270D calls for the extraction for analysis of semi-volatile analytes in various matrices. Target analytes mentioned in the method cover a wide range of compound classes resulting in reporting lists that often approach 100 compounds.

Laboratories taking in a high volume of aqueous semi-volatile samples know that every sample is different.

Shimadzu Europa GmbH

Over the last decade the use of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) has doubled in the United States.

US EPA Method 528 determines 12 phenols in finished drinking water using solid phase extraction (SPE) and GC–MS detection.

Torion Technologies Inc.

LECO Corporation

Shodex/Showa Denko America Inc.

Horizon Technology, Inc.

FMS, Inc.