Environmental Pharmaceuticals in Surface and Wastewaters

Techniques Solid phase extraction, LC-ESI-MS/MS (QqQ), selected reaction monitoring. 

Reference M. Gros, M. Petrovic, and D. Barcelo, Development of a multi-residue analytical methodology based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for screening and trace level determination of pharmaceuticals in surface and wastewaters, Talanta 70 678-690 (2006). 

Background Pharmaceuticals and personal care products are being used in increasing quantities and are now considered emerging pollutants of concern, partly because of the inefficient removal of small molecules by wastewater treatment plants. While the concentrations of these pollutants in the environment are low, there is a lack of knowledge of the long-term health risks for humans and nontarget species. 

Sensitivity was improved by switching through selected sets of SRM ions at specific times during the LC gradient, rather than monitoring continuously for aU compounds. Monitoring a second SRM transition for each analyte increased specificity by ensuring that the ratios of the intensities of the two ions were consistent with those 

Recovery efficiencies for Ibuprofen and Atenolol using four solid phase extraction columns. 

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