Determination of basic nitrogen-containing polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons formed during thermal degradation of polymers by high-performance liquid chromatography-fluorescence detection.
A method for the simultaneous determination of 22 nitrogen-containing polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (15 azaarenes and seven amino-PAHs) in the gaseous products of the thermal degradation of polymers is described. After desorption and clean-up using cation-exchange chromatography (PRS cartridge) the samples were analyzed by HPLC-FD. The validation was carried out with real nylon 6 combustion samples. The recoveries of the compounds are in the range of 89-99% for the extraction and 91-100% for the clean up procedure. The detection limits ranged from 7 to 160 pg. The high recovery values, due to the quick and efficient clean-up procedure, resulted in low relative standard deviations (with the exception of acridine and 2-aminoanthracene <5%). The applicability of the method is also investigated for the determination of the N-PAHs in a pyrolysis sample.
Wilhelm
M
M
GSF-National Research Center for Environment and Health, Institute of Ecological Chemistry, Neuherberg, Germany. wilhelm@gsf.de
Matuschek
G
G
Kettrup
A
A
D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D002852:Chromatography, Ion Exchange / Q000379:methods; D006358:Hot Temperature; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000737:chemistry*; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence
D011083:Polycyclic Compounds; D011108:Polymers; D009584:Nitrogen