Effluent from a Textile Company

Effluents, released from textile companies, may contain dyes and auxiliaries used in the textile industry. The dyes themselves often form complex mixtures that contain considerable quantities of manufacturing precursors and by-products. However, for non-target analysis not only the large variety of compounds but also the large differences in the volatility, solubility and polarity of individual components pose problems. Most of the dyes are nonvolatile or thermally unstable. Thus, in recent years predominantly LC-MS techniques have been used for the analysis of dyes [10]. However, the combined use of LC-NMR and LC-MS offers extended possibilities which are illustrated by the analysis of an untreated waste water sample from a textile company [11], 

Several anthraquinone-type dyes and their by-products, a fluorescent bright-ener, and a by-product of polyester production, as well as anionic and nonionic surfactants and their degradation products, could be identified in this sample. 

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