Selective and comprehensive analysis of organohalogen compounds by GC × GC–HRTofMS and MS/MS

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 25; no. 8; pp. 7135 - 7146
• Main Authors: Hashimoto, Shunji, Zushi, Yasuyuki, Takazawa, Yoshikatsu, Ieda, Teruyo, Fushimi, Akihiro, Tanabe, Kiyoshi, Shibata, Yasuyuki
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.03.2018
• Subjects: Advances in Environmental Chemistry of Pollutants; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Data Mining; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Environmental Pollutants - analysis; Environmental Pollutants - chemistry; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Hydrocarbons, Halogenated - analysis; Hydrocarbons, Halogenated - chemistry; Software; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Time Factors; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Mass defect; Software extraction and cleanup; Multidimensional data analysis; Neutral loss; Non-target analysis
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-015-5059-5

Thousands of organohalogen compounds, including hazardous chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other persistent organic pollutants (POPs), were selectively and simultaneously detected and identified with simple, or no, purification from environmental sample extracts by using several advanced methods. The methods used were software extraction from two-dimensional gas chromatography–high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC × GC–HRTofMS) data, measurement by negative chemical ionization with HRTofMS, and neutral loss scanning (NLS) with GC × GC–MS/MS. Global and selective detection of organochlorines and bromines in environmental samples such as sediments and fly ash was achieved by NLS using GC × GC–MS/MS (QQQ), with the expected losses of 35 Cl and 79 Br. We confirmed that negative chemical ionization was effective for sensitive and selective ionization of organohalogens, even using GC × GC–HRTofMS. The 2D total ion chromatograms obtained by using negative chemical ionization and selective extraction of organohalogens using original software from data measured by electron impact ionization were very similar; the software thus functioned well to extract organohalogens. Combining measurements made by using these different methods will help to detect organohalogens selectively and globally. However, to compare the data obtained by individual measurements, the retention times of the peaks on the 2D chromatograms need to match.