Co-reporter: Yuan Gao, Haijun Zhang, Lili Zou, Ping Wu, Zhengkun Yu, Xianbo Lu, and Jiping Chen
pp: 3746-3753
Publication Date(Web):March 3, 2016
DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.5b05115
Analysis of short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) is extremely difficult because of their complex compositions with thousands of isomers and homologues. A novel analytical method, deuterodechlorination combined with high resolution gas chromatography–high resolution mass spectrometry (HRGC–HRMS), was developed. A protocol is applied in the deuterodechlorination of SCCPs with LiAlD4, and the formed deuterated n-alkanes of different alkane chains can be distinguished readily from each other on the basis of their retention time and fragment mass ([M]+) by HRGC–HRMS. An internal standard quantification of individual SCCP congeners was achieved, in which branched C10-CPs and branched C12-CPs were used as the extraction and reaction internal standards, respectively. A maximum factor of 1.26 of the target SCCP concentrations were determined by this method, and the relative standard deviations for quantification of total SCCPs were within 10%. This method was applied to determine the congener compositions of SCCPs in commercial chlorinated paraffins and environmental and biota samples after method validation. Low-chlorinated SCCP congeners (Cl1–4) were found to account for 32.4%–62.4% of the total SCCPs. The present method provides an attractive perspective for further studies on the toxicological and environmental characteristics of SCCPs.