title: Challenges of gas chromatography-high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry for simultaneous analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers and other halogenated persistent organic pollutants in environmental samples.
abstract: The potential of a gas chromatographic method employing high-resolution time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry was evaluated for detection of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in the environmental matrices represented by fish and river sediment. Two ionisation techniques, viz. electron ionisation (EI) and negative ion chemical ionisation (NICI), the latter with methane as a reagent gas, were used in this study. While the instrumental lowest calibration levels (LCLs) obtained in El were in the range from 1 to 5 pg, their values ranged between 10 to 250 fg in NICI mode. This enhancement in detectability of target analytes enabled identification/quantification of even minor PBDE congeners, and consequently, improved characterisation of particular sample contamination patterns. In addition, this method allowed estimation of the PCB levels in examined samples. CB 153 was used as a contamination marker in this study.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chemical Technology, Prague, Department of Food Chemistry and Analysis, Technická 3, 166 28 Prague 6, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Tomás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Cajka
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hajslová
authors.forename: Radek
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kazda
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Poustka
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002849:Chromatography, Gas / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D005399:Fishes; D013058:Mass Spectrometry / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D010647:Phenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis*; D011786:Quality Control; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010647:Phenyl Ethers; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls