Target Analysis of Specific Contaminant Groups Using LC—MS

TARGET ANALYSIS OF SPECIFIC CONTAMINANT GROUPS USING LC-MS 

Flame retardant (FR) compoimds are a structurally diverse group of chemicals added to or reacted with polymers, and they are used in plastics, textiles, electronic circuitry, and other materials to reduce the risk of fire. One of these groups of compounds is brominated FRs (BFRs), some of which are ubiquitous, and many of which have been detected in biota, sediments, air, water, marine mammals, and even human milk. 

Brominated flame retardants have typically been analyzed using gas chromatography (GC)—MS but the high injection port temperatures required to transfer the analytes to the GC column can result in 

LC—MS/MS is also used to analyze metabolites and transformation products of BFRs. Abdallah et al. [38] describe HBCD transformation-product detection in dust samples by LC—MS/MS analysis. These products were identified as four pentabromocyclododecene (PBCDe) isomers and two congeners of tetrabromocyclododecadienes (TBCDe). Brandsma et al. [39] studied the presence of hydroxylated metabolites of HBCD in three wildlife species and rats exposed to HBCD for 28 days. Four t)q)es of metabolites were foimd using LC—MS/MS, the monohydroxy metabolites of TBCDe, PBCDe, and HBCD and a dihy-droxy-HBCD. The analysis of OH-PBDE metabolites by LC—MS seems interesting. However, these metabolites are poorly ionized by LC—ESI—MS, so they are not easily detected at low levels [40]. In 2007, Mas et al. [41] proposed the analysis of eight underivatized OH-PBDEs 

FIGURE 14.1 Enantiomeric HBCD separation by LC-ESI-MS/MS for a standard solution, using a Nucleodex p-PM (200 mm x 4.0 mm, 5 pm) chiral column. 

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Target Analysis of Specific Contaminant Groups Using LC-MS... 

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