Analysis of perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) and other perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in the River Po watershed in N-Italy.
C7-C11 perfluorinated carboxylates (PFACs) and perfluorooctansulfonate (PFOS) were analysed in selected stretches of the River Po and its major tributaries. Analyses were performed by solid-phase extraction (SPE) with Oasis HLB cartridges and methanol elution followed by LC-MS-MS detection using 13C-labelled internal standards. High concentration levels ( approximately 1.3 microg l(-1)) of perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) were detected in the Tánaro River close to the city Alessandria. After this tributary, levels between 60 and 337 ng l(-1) were measured in the Po River on several occasions. The PFOA concentration close to the river mouth in Ferrara was between 60 and 174 ng l(-1). Using the river discharge flow data in m3 s(-1) at this point (average approximately 920 m3 s(-1) for the year 2006), a mass load of approximately 0.3 kg PFOA per hour or approximately 2.6 tons per year discharged in the Adriatic Sea has been calculated. PFOS concentration levels in the Po River at Ferrara were approximately 10 ng l(-1).
Loos
Robert
R
Institute for Environment and Sustainability, Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Via Enrico Fermi, 21020 Ispra, TP 290, Italy. Robert.Loos@jrc.it <Robert.Loos@jrc.it>
Locoro
Giovanni
G
Huber
Tania
T
Wollgast
Jan
J
Christoph
Eugen H
EH
de Jager
Alfred
A
Manfred Gawlik
Bernd
B
Hanke
Georg
G
Umlauf
Gunther
G
Zaldívar
José-Manuel
JM
D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000032:analysis*; D007558:Italy; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D052616:Solid Phase Extraction; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry; D013997:Time Factors; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
D005466:Fluorocarbons; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical