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Rapid Method for Determination of Dioxin-Like Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Other Congeners in Marine Sediments Using Sonic Extraction and Photodiode Array Detection

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Abstract

A rapid method has been developed to measure dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners as well as other selected PCBs in sediment. The analytes were extracted from sediment by sonication with dichloromethane, and the PCBs were separated from interfering compounds on a gravity-flow cleanup column packed with acidic, basic, and neutral silica gels eluted with 1:1 hexane:pentane (v/v). Subsequently, the dioxin-like PCB congeners were resolved from nonplanar PCBs and other chlorinated compounds by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Two important advantages of PDA over conventional UV detection are the ability to identify individual analytes by comparing their UV spectra with those of reference standards and the ability to establish the spectral homogeneity (purity) of the analytes by comparing spectra within a peak to the apex spectrum. The HPLC-PDA method was tested with reference and marine sediment samples. Concentrations of selected dioxin-like PCBs, selected nonplanar PCBs, and summed PCBs in sediments and National Institute of Standards and Technology standard reference materials determined by our rapid HPLC-PDA method were comparable with the levels in the same samples analyzed by alternative comprehensive methods (i.e., gas chromatography–electron capture detection or high-resolution gas chromatography–high-resolution mass spectrometry).

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Acknowledgments

We appreciate the technical assistance or advice of Donald Brown, Jennie Bolton, Daryle Boyd, Richard Boyer, Catherine Sloan, Larry Hufnagle, Sena Camarata, and Carol Pitzel. We thank Erika Hoffman from the United States EPA for providing data from HRGC-HRMS analyses, Catherine Sloan and Jennie Bolton for providing GC-ECD data, and Jim Meador for assistance with the statistical analysis and interpretation. We appreciate the helpful suggestions and manuscript review by Doug Burrows and Dave Herman.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Conservation Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce, 2725 Montlake Blvd. East, Seattle, WA, 98112-2097, United States

    J. Buzitis, G. M. Ylitalo & M. M. Krahn

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  1. J. Buzitis
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  2. G. M. Ylitalo
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  3. M. M. Krahn
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Correspondence to J. Buzitis.

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Buzitis, J., Ylitalo, G.M. & Krahn, M.M. Rapid Method for Determination of Dioxin-Like Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Other Congeners in Marine Sediments Using Sonic Extraction and Photodiode Array Detection. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 51, 337–346 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-005-0162-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-005-0162-0

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