Separation of Chlordane Residues From Aroclor 1248, 1254 and 1260 and Soil Degradation Products

Abstract

Polychlorinated biphenyls often occur simultaneously in environmental samples complicating the identification and quantification of chlordane. A method is presented for the separation of chlordane and two of its metabolites from several polychlorinated biphenyl mixtures. Soil samples were subjected to controlled environments so that degradation of PCB residues could be followed over a period of 10 months in order to examine interference to the method by PCB degradation products.     

Degradation of PCB by Bacteria Isolated from Long-Time Contaminated Soil

Abstract

Four bacterial isolates belonging to the genera Pseudomonas and Alcaligenes were obtained by the enrichment method, using biphenyl as the sole carbon source, from the soil, which underwent long-time contamination with technical mixtures of PCB. Kinetics of PCB degradation by individual isolates was measured using n-hexane extraction of the cultivation media in proper time intervals and analysed by congener specific gas chromatography with electron capture detection. All isolates exhibit interesting biodegradative potential. Specific degradation of individual congeners with respect to the number and position of chlorine substituents is discussed. The influence of glucose, biphenyl and 3-chlorobenzoic acid on the PCB degradation has been assessed.     

Dissolved organic carbon--contaminant interaction descriptors found by 3D force field calculations

Enthalpies of transfer at 300 K of various partitioning processes were calculated in order to study the suitability of 3D force fields for the calculation of partitioning constants. A 3D fulvic acid (FA) model of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) was built in a MM+ force field using AM1 atomic charges and geometrical optimization (GO). 3,5-Dichlorobiphenyl (PCB14), 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl (PCB15), 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis-(4-chlorophenyl)-ethane (PPDDT) and 2-chloro-4-ethylamino-6-isopropylamino- s -triazine (Atrazine) were inserted into different sites and their interaction energies with FA were calculated. Energies of hydration were calculated and subtracted from FA-contaminant interactions of selected sites. The resulting values for the enthalpies of transfer from water to DOC were 2.8, m 1.4, m 6.4 and 0.0 kcal/mol for PCB14, PCB15, PPDDT and Atrazine, respectively. The value of PPDDT compared favorably with the experimental value of m 5.0 kcal/mol. Prior to this, the method was studied by the calculation of the enthalpies of vaporization and aqueous solution using various force fields. In the MM+ force field GO predicted enthalpies of vaporization deviated by +0.7 (PCB14), +3.6 (PCB15) and m 0.7 (PPDDT) kcal/mol from experimental data, whereas enthalpies of aqueous solution deviated by m 3.6 (PCB14), +5.8 (PCB15) and +3.7 (PPDDT) kcal/mol. Only for PCB14 the wrong sign of this enthalpy value was predicted. Potential advantages and limitations of the approach were discussed.     

Interference of Transformer oil Matrices to the Internal Standards on PCB Quantification

Abstract

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are toxic, perssstent, global environmental contaminants which were formulated as complex mixtures of congeners. Many methods have been developed in the past to analyze PCB in transformer oil samples for regulatory purposes. The most important consideration in the cleanup procedure is the ability to remove the oil from the sample matrix, since trace amount of oil will interfere with the subsequent GC-MS analysis. Electron capture detection (ECD) has been the most common method for gas chromatographic analysis of PCBs because of its high sensitivity toward halogenated compounds. ECD can also respond to some non-PCB compound resulting in biased concentrations of PCB. In this work, a two-stage cleanup method, using DMSO liquid/liquid extraction and HPLC column chromatography. has been applied to two types of transformer oil. Five internal standards have been selected to show their performance in the presence of different oil matrices. The comparison of the PCB quantification at different conditions for GC-MS and GC-ECD will be demonstrated.     

Multivariate Observations of the Distribution of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Environmental Compartments of Two Harbours

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to identify, classify and categorize polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) residues in samples collected from the Hamilton and Wheatley Harbour environmental compartments. The study is built around the use of a principal components analysis method, namely the soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA) technique. This multivariate method is widely used for evaluating differences and observing similarities among multiple objects. The results obtained from this work confirm that the gas chromatographic data sets obtained with the samples provide a good approximation of the pattern derived from a determination of the composition of commercial Aroclors in water, sediment and biota samples. The data analysis technique provides insight into the origin of PCB contamination in environmental samples and indicates pathways for the environmental degradation or bioaccumulation of PCBs. This investigation contributes some evidence that multivariate reduction techniques are suitable for the investigation of complex data sets in environmental studies.     

Confirmation Studies on Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) From River Waters Using Mass Fragmentography

Abstract

A specific and sensitive method to confirm the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) in river water is described. Mass fragmentography is shown to be a proper technique especially when utilizing naturally occurring stable isotopes of chlorine. Synthesized tetrachloro-, pentachloro-and hexachlo-ro biphenyls were used to focus the mass spectrometer at three selected masses so called multiple ion detection (MID).     

Anaerobic Degradation of PCB in Soils

Abstract

The anaerobic degradation of PCB in loamy and clayey soils containing indigeneous microflora was studied. The anaerobic conditions were created by an argon atmosphere in the flasks containing soil flooded by a liquid medium with glucose. GC-ECD analysis of soil extracts after 40 day incubation showed, in addition to the concentration changes of the less chlorinated PCB congeners, a significant decrease in the concentration of highly chlorinated congeners in both soils. The results indicate that in both soil types reductive dehalogenation of PCB congeners was encountered.     

Validation of the Method of Selected Polychlorinated Biphenyls Determination in Human Milk Samples

A method for determination of trace concentrations of individual PCB congeners in human milk was validated. The analytical procedure included the following steps: acetone : hexane extraction, clean-up of extracts with concentrated sulfuric acid and solid phase extraction (SPE) on Florisil. The identification and quantification of analytes in purified extracts were carried out by high-resolution gas chromatography (HRGC) with electron capture detection (ECD) and/or with low-resolution mass spectrometry (LRMS). Recoveries of 14 PCB congeners from spiked cow milk samples, based on HRGC-ECD were between 87.3 and 93.6%. The precision of analyte determination was established as close to or less than 10%. The detection limits ranged between 0.14 and 0.26 ng/g fat and the quantification limits between 0.57 and 0.86 ng/g fat. The method was linear and characterized by good correlation coefficients (>0.99) for most of the compounds studied. The quality of the method under validation was verified by the analysis of Standard Reference Material (CRM-450) and interlaboratory exercise.     

Flow-injection spectrophotometric determination of chloramben

Abstract

A method for the dechlorination of PCB mixtures (Aroclor formulations) to biphenyl was extended to soils. The contaminated sample was mixed with magnesium flakes, potassium hexachloropalladiate (K₂PdCl₆), propan-2-ol and water then permitted to react for up to six hours. Biphenyl, recovered by extraction into hexane, was quantified by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection. The reaction was very efficient in propan-2-ol / water (～95%), surfactant emulsion or sand mixture and virtually complete in soil provided that excess magnesium (2 g) and the K₂PdCl₆ were added to the sample prior to the addition of water. Higher PCB loadings were readily determined in field contaminated soils either by direct determination within the matrix or by standard additions. However, analyte concentrations were appreciably over-estimated in Soxhlet or sonication extracts of a certified reference material that contained sub-ppm levels of analyte. The over-estimation is considered to result from the conversion in part of natural organic matter to biphenyl.     

Determination of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Paper Mill Effluents and Process Streams

Abstract

Special techniques have been found necessary for isolating PCB's from cellulose fiber-containing effluents and process streams and for determining PCB's in effluents from paper mills using recycled fiber. Sources of potential PCB loss from aqueous solutions are revealed and means of avoiding these losses are proposed.

Significant amounts of PCB remained on cellulose fibers following separatory funnel extraction of a fiber-water suspension with hexane or methylene chloride-hexane. Reflux of the fibers with alcoholic KOH was necessary to remove the remaining PCBs. PCB losses due to volatilization from aqueous solution occurred during analysis, but these were minimized by working in a cool environment and covering the Sample with a layer of hexane. The presence of cellulose fibers in PCB-containing effluents enhanced the effluents' stability during storage.

Chromium trioxide oxidation was found to be valuable in cleaning up extracts from paper mill effluents. Perchlorination is apt to yield misleading results.     

Detection of PCB77 by Antibody-Coated Competitive Fluorescent Quantitative Immuno-PCR Using Molecular Beacon

Abstract

A rapid and quantitative technique is urgently needed in detecting toxicological and carcinogenic polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in the environment. In this study, a high sensitive real time fluorescent quantitative immuno-PCR (FQ-IPCR) approach using molecular beacon (MB) was developed to detect PCB77, which was classified as a human carcinogen. MB-based FQ-IPCR was then performed on serial dilutions of known PCB77 concentrations equivalent to 10-fold dilutions of 10–10⁵ fg/mL. A correlation coefficient of 0.997 was identified, and a linear relationship between 10 fg/mL and 100 pg/mL, with y = 0.543x + 21.779, was obtained. Three soil samples were determined by MB-based FQ-IPCR to proof the validity of the method, and the results of which were further confirmed by conventional enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay (ELISA). Based on sensitivity and reproduction, the MB-based real time FQ-IPCR technique will become a promising monitoring tool for environmental endocrine disruptors.     

Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Bivalve Samples for Simultaneous GC-MS Determination of Polychlorobiphenyls and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons

Abstract

A method is presented for the simultaneous determination of polychlorobiphenyls and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in bivalve samples. The method implies the fortification of the freeze-dried sample with isotopically labeled internal standards; followed by extraction with supercritical carbon dioxide modified with 3% methanol, then a simple clean-up step on a silicagel packed Pasteur pipette and, finally, determination by gaschomatography-mass spectrometry. The method requires little time and labor compared to traditional methods, uses negligible amounts of solvents and produces little wastes. Sixty different PCB congeners and seven selected PAHs are analyzed. Six replicate analyses were performed on the SRM 2974 certified material and the results are discussed.     

Fast Gas Chromatographic Assessment of Polychlorobiphenyl Levels in Wall Plaster Coats

Abstract

Sampling (“scrape test”) and analytical procedures were defined to determine PCBs in sorbing solid surfaces such as wall plaster. After sampling, samples were extracted by means of a mechanical device. Following steps included clean-up on a multilayer chromatographic column and assessment with macrobore capillary gas chromatography equipped with an electron capture detector. Mean recovery yields were ≧75% for PCB levels from 2.00 to 7000μg/m² (0.550–1940 μg/kg). Intralaboratory tests performed by two independent operators yielded: (a) maximum deviation from expected value, 25%; (b) maximum deviation between operators, 17%; and (c) maximum variation coefficient, 20%. Background PCB levels in wall surface layer samples were ≧2.9μg/m² (≧0.81 μg/kg). The analytical procedure tested with agricultural topsoil samples provided mean recovery yields >65% for PCB levels ≧500 μg/ kg (≧ 50 mg/m²).     

Toxic Congener-Specific Analysis of PCBs: Assessment of Toxicity in Equivalents of TCDD

Abstract

High resolution capillary gas chromatographic analysis of the polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs) present in snapping turtle eggs, provided quantitative data on selected toxic congeners. The concentrations of these congeners have been converted into equivalent toxic concentrations of 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-p-dibenzodioxin (TCDD). The toxic equivalent factors (TEFs), necessary to effect this transformation were derived from EC₅₀ values (half the concentration of the toxic congener required to produce the maximum effect) for aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase (AHH) induction associated with the corresponding toxic PCB congener or isomer. Summation of the resulting toxic equivalents provided a composite assessment of the toxlcity of the PCB mixture in terms of an equivalent concentration of TCDD.     

Determination of polychlorinated biphenyls by fast chromatography mass-spectrometry in environmental and biological samples

A method for the determination of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) by fast gas chromatography coupled with mass-spectrometric detection in selective ion monitoring mode has been developed. Chromatographic separation was carried out with HT-8 column (30 m × 0.25 mm) under sharp temperature increase from 80 to 320°C at a rate of 40°C/min. Duration of chromatography is 10 min. Fast chromatography conditions suggested by authors makes it possible to increase S/N ratios 10 times and so to reduce significantly the representative weight of the sample and develop an effective sample preparation technique. The method was used for PCB determination in Baikal area samples such as soil, snow, sediments from Lake Baikal and its tributaries, tissues of Baikal omul (Coregonus migratorius, Georgi, 1775) and blubber of Baikal seal (Phoca sibirica Gm.). The sample preparation stage includes PCB extraction from environmental samples and hydrolyzate of biological material with the following cleanup of the extract on the compact silica gel and florisil cartridges (0.5 g of the sorbent). The method enables the measurements of total PCBs and isomer groups of the same chlorination level with interlaboratory precision of no greater than 10% and the determination of indicator congeners (PCBs 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153, and 180) with a precision not exceeding 15%.     

Analysis of Toxaphene (PCC) and Chlordane in Biological Samples by NCI Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

Several recent reports indicate that both toxaphene (polychlorocamphene, PCC) and chlordane are widespread pollutants in our environment. These insecticides, both complex mixtures of chlorinated hydrocarbons, are difficult to separate from each other. Thus the analyses of them in environmental samples are difficult and furthermore complicated by interferences from other chlorinated hydrocarbons such as PCB and DDT compounds. Mass fragmentography using the negative ions formed by chemical ionization proved to be useful to selectively detect the toxaphenes and the chlordanes without interferences from DDT. High concentrations of PCB still influence on the results and have to be removed in the clean-up procedure.     

Bio Availability of Polychlorinated Biphenyl Congeners in the Soil to Earthworm (L. rubellus) System

Abstract

The earthworm's (Lumbricus rubellus) uptake of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from a soil contaminated with a commercial PCB formulation (Askarel at 150 μg g^?1) and their elimination of PCBs into a low contaminated soil (15 μg g^?1) has been studied. 17 individual congeners were monitored. The uptake and the elimination rate were similar for all PCB congeners notwithstanding their different chloro-substitution pattern which suggested that bioaccumulation of PCBs in earthworms is governed by passive, possibly diffusion controlled processes. The equilibrium state in the three-phase system, soil/soil water/earthworm was reached with a half-time around 3–4 days. The soil to earthworm bioconcentration factor ranged from 4 to 20 for tetra- to octa-chlorinated biphenyls and was weakly depending on the octanol-water partition coefficient: BCF = ?(1.3?1.8) × K _OW ^(0.35?0.40).     

Automated PCB Analysis,Quantitation and Reporting

Abstract

Sample analysis from a variety of matrices was performed using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Average relative response factors were calculated for each polychlorinated biphenyl homologue (tri-to deca-chlorobiphenyl) using in-house calibration standard solutions. Sample quantitation using RRFs provided homologue specific results. A series of software macros were used to automate the interpretation of spectral data and the selection of possible PCB congener peaks.     

Quantification of PCB by dechlorination to biphenyl

Summary Since polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) are widespread biologically active contaminants in the environment, the need of a sensitive, rapid and simple screening-method for control purposes is obvious. The dechlorination of PCB to biphenyl with LiAlH₄ and subsequent quantification by HPLC and UV detection may fulfil these requirements. Results achieved with this dechlorination method are compared with those obtained by packed-column or capillary-column gas chromatography and EC detection.

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Bestimmung von PCB durch Dechlorierung zu Biphenyl

Zusammenfassung Das ubiquitäre Vorkommen von polychlorierten Biphenylen (PCB) als Kontaminantien in unserer Umwelt erfordert eine empfindliche, rasche und einfache Screening-Methode. Dechlorierung der PCB mit LiAlH₄ zu Biphenyl und anschließende Quantifizierung mittels HPLC und UV-Detektion erfüllt diese Forderungen. Analysenresultate der beschriebenen Dechlorierungsmethode werden verglichen mit Resultaten der Gas-Chromatographie an gepackten Säulen und Capillarsäulen mit EC-Detektion.