title: Polar organic pollutants in the Elbe river. Liquid chromatographic-mass spectrometric and flow-injection analysis-mass spectrometric analyses demonstrating changes in quality and concentration during the unification process in Germany.
abstract: During the unification process of the two German states from 1989 to 1994, water extracts from the Elbe river were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) combined with ultraviolet (UV) and/or mass spectrometric detection (MS) in order to monitor the pollutants in one of the most contaminated European rivers. After column chromatography (LC) or flow-injection analysis (FIA) bypassing the analytical column, ionization was performed by a thermospray interface (TSP). Semiquantitative estimations of the pollution of the Elbe were made from the total-ion current traces (TIC) of the extracts. Determination of the total dissolved organic carbon (DOC) indicated a reduction of more than 55% of pollutants in the water phase. The pollutants were identified by tandem mass spectrometry (MS-MS), generating daughter-ion spectra by collision-induced dissociation (CID) using either column chromatography or direct mixture analysis. Compound-specific analyses indicated a reduction in the amount of pollutants as well as a change in their composition. This could be explained by reduced industrial production and by intensified construction of biological sewage treatment plants.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Siedlungswasserwirtschaft, Aachen University of Technology, Germany.
authors.forename: H F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Schröder
mesh_terms: D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D005858:Germany; D013058:Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical