Speciation of organotin compounds by tandem mass spectrometry

The collison-induced dissociation of a range of organotin compounds has been examined by tandem (MS–MS) mass spectrometry in order to investigate the potential of the technique for speciation without prior chromatographic separation. Tables of parent–daughte ion relationships are prepared for a group of six closely related compounds. The results obtained are sufficiently characteristic to distinguish between the isolated compounds and to identify the individual components of a simple mixture. This procedure has potential applications for less volatile compounds and for quantitative analysis.     

Speciation and GC retention indices of some organotin compounds in water

Analytical methods have been developed for the quantitative determination of Bu₄Sn, Bu₃Sn⁺, Bu₂Sn²⁺, BuSn³⁺, Me₃BuSn, Me₂Bu₂Sn, MeBu₃Sn, MeBuSn²⁺, Me₂BuSn⁺ and MeBu₂Sn⁺ in water. Organotin compounds are extracted from water with tropolone at 0.1 % in n-pentane, derivatized with n-pentylmagnesium bromide and determined by gas chromatography with flame photometric detection or flame ionization detection. Absolute detection limits are 0.05-0.12 ng and 1.2-13 ng as tin, respectively. The method was applied to the analysis of spiked tap-water containing 0.3-1000 ng cm^?3 of each of the organotin compounds.     

Simplified sample preparation for GC speciation analysis of organotin in marine biomaterials

Two simple sample preparation methods for the speciation analysis of triphenyltin and butyltin compounds in marine biotissues, using tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) solubilization and enzymic hydrolysis, have been developed and compared with conventional acid digestion. Derivatization was carried out in situ using sodium tetraethylborate (NaBEt₄) without prior separation of the analytes from the tissue matrix. Separation and detection was performed using capillary gas chromatography (GC) coupled to microwave-induced plasma atomic emission spectrometry (MIP AE) allowing detection limits of 2 ng g^?1 (as tin) to be reached. The accuracy of the presented methods was demonstrated by the analysis of a fish reference material (NIES No. 11). the necessity for sample clean-up is discussed and examples of the analysis of mussel tissue are shown.     

Aluminium speciation in environmental samples: a review

Because of its toxic effects on living beings, Al may represent an environmental hazard, particularly under increased acidic conditions. Growing environmental concern over the presence of increased Al concentrations in soil solutions and fresh waters resulted in the development of numerous analytical techniques for the determination of Al species. Al has a very complex chemistry that is significantly influenced by pH. Different Al species are present in environmental solutions, and many of them are unstable. Contamination of samples and reagents by extraneous Al represents an additional problem in speciation of Al at trace concentrations. Due to these reasons quantitative determination of particular chemical forms of Al is still a very difficult task for analytical chemists. The most important analytical methodologies of the last decade and new trends for the speciation of Al in environmental samples are comprehensively reviewed here.     

A new application of imprinted polymers: Speciation of organotin compounds

Molecular imprinting technology has been employed for the first time to prepare a specifically affinity chromatographic stationary phase for speciation purposes. Tributyltin has been chosen as the template molecule and the non-covalent approach has been applied. Three different polymerization methods have been evaluated: (i) a composite material, (ii) a polymer prepared via-Iniferter grafting; (iii) an emulsion polymer. Columns packed with different polymers have been evaluated by liquid chromatography (LC) coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The chromatographic conditions as well as the analytical characteristics of the developed method are discussed in this paper. Our findings have shown formation of specific cavities in the grafted Iniferter as well as in the emulsion polymers with the latter achieving resolution of four organotin compounds. Detection limits are similar to those obtained with commercial, but not specific, stationary phases (6 pg for monobutyltin, MBT; 10 pg for both tributyltin, TBT, and triphenyltin, TPhT; and 20 pg for dibutyltin, DBT). The main advantage of this proposed stationary phase is that good recovery is obtained for all species, including MBT. Baseline resolution for TBT and TPhT has also been obtained. The high selectivity of this column prevents matrix interferences. The method has been validated by analyzing two biota reference materials (ERM-CE477 mussel tissue and T-38 oyster tissue).     

Encapsulation of organotin compounds in metal acetate glasses

Triorganotin halides, oxides and sulphides can be dissolved in molten, mixed-metal acetates at ca 140–160°C without decomposition; quenching provides glasses into which are encapsulated the organotin species. Halide/acetate and oxide/acetate, but not sulphide/acetate, exchanges occur in the melt. Only partial exchange was found for hindered trineophyl tin chloride [(PhCMe₂CH₂)₃SnCl], in contrast to the complete exchanges observed for the butyl (Bu), phenyl (Ph) and cyclohexyl (Cy) analogues. Complete oxide/acetate exchange was found for (Bu₃Sn)₂O, partial exchange occurred for (Cy₃Sn)₂O, whilst no exchange resulted with bis(trineophyltin) oxide or (Ph₃Sn)₂O. Tin–tin bonds (e.g. as in Ph₃SnSnPh₃) and carbon–tin bonds (even the allyl–Sn bond in Bu₃SnCH₂CH?CH₂) are not affected. The acetate glasses dissolve in aqueous media with release of the organotin species and they have potential as slow-release systems which is currently being investigated.     

An evaluation of reversed-phase and ion-exchange chromatography for use with inductively coupled plasma—mass spectrometry for the determination of organotin compounds

An evaluation of reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) employing mobile phases compatible with direct coupling to inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) is described for the selective and sensitive detection of organotin species. The findings of this study are compared with established methods, employing ion-exchange chromatography. In order to achieve optimum performance, both the HPLC and ICP-MS were optimized for speciation work. The results from studies using various mobile phases for the separation of a range of tin compounds (inorganic tin, tributyltin, dibutyltin and monobutyltin) are discussed both in terms of resolution and compatibility with ICP-MS instrumentation. Tropolone, a commonly used complexing agent for organotin species, is also discussed with reference to the chromatographic separation of tin species. Finally, the role of isotope dilution analysis in conjunction with HPLC-ICP-MS for organotin speciation is described with respect to the European Community Standards, Measurements and Testing (BCR) certified material programme.     

HPTLC analysis of organotin compounds in preservative solutions and preservative-treated wood

A high-performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method is described for the determination of tributyltin compounds (bis(tri-n-butyltin) oxide, TBTO, and tri-n-butyltin naphthenate, TBTN) and their degradation products (dibutyltin and monobutyltin compounds). The organotin compounds are extracted from wood with ethanol containing 0.5% (v/v) of hydrochloric acid and the separation of the defferent kinds of organotin compounds is achieved by thin-layer chromatography. The sample spots are measured using a scanning densitometer after decomposing the organotin compounds to inorganic tin by ultraviolet irradiation and visualization of the spots with pyrocatechol violet. Applications of the method to detection and quantification of organotin compounds in preservative solutions, in recently impregnated wood, and in wood samples from five-year-old window frames are described.     

A novel mode of access to polyfunctional organotin compounds and their reactivity in Stille cross-coupling reaction

Mono-, di-, tri- and tetra-functional organotin compounds were easily prepared in a sonicated Barbier reaction using ultrasound technology via coupling reaction of organo halides with tin halides (Bu₃SnCl, Bu₂SnCl₂, BuSnCl₃, SnCl₄) mediated by magnesium metal. The di- and tri-functional organotin compounds were tested in a Stille cross-coupling reaction in order to ascertain how many groups were transferred.     

Structural chemistry of organotin carboxylates: a review of the crystallographic literature

This review describes the structural chemistry of organotin carboxylates, covering data acquired for mono-, di- and tri-organotin compounds and complexes. A brief discussion is given for organotin amino-acid derivatives.     

Extraction procedures for chemical speciation of arsenic in atmospheric total suspended particles

An arsenic chemical speciation study was performed in 2000, using air filters on which total suspended particles (TSP) were collected, from the city of Huelva, a medium size city with huge industrial influence in SW Spain. Different procedures for extraction of the arsenic species were performed using water, NH₂OH.HCl, and H₃PO₄ solutions, with either microwave or ultrasonic radiation. The best optimised extraction methods were use of 100 mmol L^–1 NH₂OH.HCl and 10 mmol L^–1 H₃PO₄ and microwave radiation for 4 min. High-performance liquid chromatography coupled with hydride generation and atomic fluorescence spectrometry (HPLC–HG–AFS) was employed for determination of the arsenic species. The results from 12 TSP air filters collected on a monthly basis showed extraction was quantitative (94% with NH₂OH.HCl and 86% H₃PO₄). Only inorganic arsenic species (arsenite and arsenate) were detected. The mean arsenite concentration was 1.2±0.3 ng m^–3 (minimum 0.3 ng m^–3, maximum 1.8 ng m^–3). The mean arsenate concentration was 10.4±1.8 ng m^–3, with greater monthly variations than arsenite (minimum 2.1 ng m^–3, maximum 30.6 ng m^–3). The high level of arsenic species in the TSP samples can be related to a copper smelter located in the region.     

涡旋提取-改进BCR法测定土壤中重金属的化学形态

土壤中重金属的化学形态更能表明其迁移性和生物毒性。传统的重金属化学形态检测方法BCR法由于其提取时间长,影响检测效率。采用涡旋提取对传统BCR法进行方法优化,对土壤中Cu、Zn、Pb、Cd、Ni、Cr等6种重金属元素化学形态进行了实验分析。研究了涡旋转速、涡旋时间以及涡旋提取的方法精密度与准确度。结果表明,当涡旋转速为2500rpm,酸可交换态涡旋10min,可还原态涡旋10min,可氧化态涡旋5min时,涡旋提取效果良好。采用土壤标准物质对方法的适用性进行了验证,6种元素的检出限在0.4?32μg/kg,测定值均在标准值范围内,相对标准偏差在0.3%?5.5%之间。涡旋提取-改进BCR法分析速度快,灵敏度高,能满足同时测定土壤中多种金属元素化学形态的检测要求。     

Fractionation studies of mercury in soils and sediments: A review of the chemical reagents used for mercury extraction

Mercury in contaminated soils and sediments could be extracted by various chemical reagents in order to determine the different mercury species and partitions, providing useful information of toxicology, bioavailability and biogeochemical reactivity. Unfortunately, at present, neither specific extractants nor standard protocols exist for the isolation of particular mercury species. Although there has been considerable research focused on reagents for extracting mercury species, there is still little consensus. Thus, workers are advised to select the most appropriate reagent based on the nature of their sample, and to take all possible steps to validate the analyses performed. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to review the current reagents used for determining total mercury and its speciation as well as fractionation such as methylmercury, ethylmercury, elemental mercury, mercury sulphide and organically bound mercury by supposed selective (one reagent) and sequential (several reagents) extractions. The gathering information presented here bring to light the need for standard protocol for which the used chemical reagents should take into account the particular chemistry of mercury associated with specific properties of soil and sediment. Beside this required scheme, appropriate reference materials are also demanded.     

GC FPD method for the simultaneous speciation of butyltin and phenyltin compounds in waters

A method is described for the simultaneous determination of nanogram amounts of mono-, di- and tri-butyltin compounds in water. The procedure is based on the conversion of tin compounds to volatile species by Grignard pentylation and analysis using GC with flame photometric detection (GC FPD). The ionic compounds are extracted from diluted acidified (HBr) aqueous solutions by using a pentane-tropolone solution. The extracted organotin compounds are pentylated by a Grignard reagent and purified on a Fluorisil column before analysis by GC FPD. The detection limits are 20 ng dm^?3 for butyltin compounds and 50 ng dm^?3 for phenyltin compounds. Recoveries from spiking experiments in tap-water and natural seawater matrices, in which no organotin compounds were detected, were greater than 90% for most of the alkyltin compounds.     

Improvement of quality control of speciation analysis using hyphenated techniques A decade of progress within the European Community

The awareness of a need for an improved control of environmental contamination levels has led to the development of new hyphenated techniques for the determination of a wide variety of chemical species (e.g., organotins, methyl-mercury, alkyl-lead compounds etc.). These techniques generally involve many analytical steps such as extraction, derivatisation, separation and detection which have to be carried out in such a way that the speciation is not changed during the abalytical process. The need for evaluating the method's performance has led the BCR programme of the European Commission (now Standards, Measurements and Testing programme) to conduct series of interlaboratory studies during the last decade. These projects followed a step-by-step approach for the evaluation of different steps of the analytical methods used, e.g., simple solutions to test the detection, cleaned extract to evaluate the separation, spiked samples to test the extraction and natural samples to evaluate the whole analytical procedures. These collaborative projects allowed most of the sources of errors related to either a technique or a laboratory to be detected and removed. This paper gives an account of discussions of possible errors occurring in speciation analysis and presents examples of technical scrutiny of hyphenated techniques using chromatography as applied to the determination of tributyltin, methyl-mercury and trimethyllead.     

Trace analysis of tributyltin and triphenyltin compounds in sea water by gas chromatography–negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry

An analytical gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) method using negative ion chemical ionization (NICI) has been investigated for the determination of trace tributyltin (TBT) and triphenyltin (TPhT) compounds in sea water. TBT and TPhT were extracted from samples as chloride under the acidic condition of HCl. Doping of the GC system with a dilute HBr–methanolic solution resulted in direct detection of the chlorides of TBT, TPhT and tripentyltin (TPenT, internal standard). As the result of HBr doping, a sharp peak of the respective organotin bromides appeared: during GC analysis, halogen exchange from the chloride to the bromide occurred. NICI-MS was highly selective and sensitive for the detection of TBT, TPhT and TPenT bromides. In the selected ion monitoring mode of NICI-MS, the minimum detectable amounts defined as the signal equal to three times the standard deviation (3σ) of the baseline noise were 20 and 25 pg ml⁻¹ for TBT and TPhT, respectively. These amounts are approximately 250–400 times better than those in electron impact mode. The combination of GC using an apolar capillary column doped with a dilute HBr–methanolic solution and NICI-MS made it possible to determine TBT and TPhT at less than the ng l⁻¹ level in sea water.     

Relationship of cytotoxic groups in organotin molecules and the effectiveness of the compounds against leukemia

Cytotoxicity of organotin compounds is assessed and their effectiveness against leukemia is discussed. The functional groups attached to the tin atom in organotin compounds control the cytotoxicity of the compound towards the thymus gland. The four organotin moieties which have the greatest toxic effect upon the thymus gland are the tri-n-butyltin, di-n-butyltin, tri-n-propyltin and di-n-octyltin groups. Compounds containing these groups also exhibit the poorest test-control ratio (T/C) values when tested as anti-cancer agents against leukemic mice using NCI protocol.     

Biological chemistry of organotin compounds: Interactions and dealkylation by dithiols

In this paper, we review our past and current efforts toward the elucidation of the biological chemistry of organotin compounds. In particular, we cover two prominent aspects of organotin compounds: their reactivity toward biological dithiols, and their degradation (or metabolization) mechanism using a combination of experimental and computational techniques.     

Isotope dilution analysis as a definitive tool for the speciation of organotin compounds

Different spike solutions available for the determination of butyltin compounds by isotope dilution analysis are described and applied for the determination of butyltin compounds in PACS-2 certified reference material. Additionally, those spike solutions were evaluated during the course of an interlaboratory exercise organised by the National Research Council of Canada and the Laboratory of the Government Chemist (UK) in order to quantify tributyltin in a pilot sediment. The aim of this project was to evaluate the capabilities of isotope dilution mass spectrometry to reduce the uncertainty in the certification of Reference Materials for the speciation of organotin compounds. All participants were supplied with a 17Sn-enriched TBT solution from the Laboratory of the Government Chemist (UK). In our case, we performed the analysis of the pilot sediment also using a 119Sn enriched spike (mixed mono-, di- and tributyltin) and a 118Sn-119Sn double spike. The use of these additional spike solutions not only allowed the determination of monobutyltin and dibutyltin in the pilot sediment but also the evaluation and correction of possible extraction-derived rearrangement reactions. An excellent agreement amongst our results and between the participants was obtained with a precision of 8.4% RSD at a level of ca. 80 ng TBT g(-1) (as Sn).