A rapid and sensitive method for methyl tert-butyl ether analysis in water samples by use of solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.
This work describes a rapid and sensitive solid-phase microextraction (SPME) method for the isolation and analysis of methyl tert-butyl ether in water samples. Methyl tert-butyl ether was extracted from aqueous solutions using SPME fibre coated with Divinylbenzene/Carboxen/polydimethylsiloxane (30 microm film thickness) and analysed by GC-MS with a Hewlett Packard 6890/5973 system equipped with a capillary column coated with Vocol (30 m x 0.25 mm, 1.5 microm film thickness). Extraction parameters and chromatographic separation conditions were optimised. The developed method showed good analytical performance in terms of precision (RSD between 2% and 8%) and accuracy (mean recovery from 96% to 104%) with a detection limit of 14 ppt. Finally the method was applied to surface, tap and commercial mineral water samples, as well as snow samples collected along a busy road of Bologna town area. The median concentration of methyl tert-butyl ether in all these samples (0.05-0.4 ppb) was well below the maximum aqueous contamination levels in water adopted in the United States (13 ppb).
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Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bologna, Italy.
Barbieri
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Violante
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Roda
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D002273:Carcinogens / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D008738:Methyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D014881:Water Supply
D002273:Carcinogens; D008738:Methyl Ethers; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C043243:methyl tert-butyl ether