Determination of halonitromethanes in treated water

• Published in: Journal of Chromatography A Vol. 1218; no. 18; pp. 2497 - 2504
• Main Authors: Montesinos, I., Cardador, M.J., Gallego, M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 06.05.2011; Elsevier
• Subjects: Analytical chemistry; Applied sciences; Arrays; Biological and medical sciences; Byproducts; Chemical Fractionation - methods; Chemistry; Chromatographic methods and physical methods associated with chromatography; Chromatography; Consumption; detection limit; disinfection; Drinking water and swimming-pool water. Desalination; Environmental pollutants toxicology; Ethane - analogs & derivatives; Ethane - chemistry; Exact sciences and technology; Gas chromatographic methods; gas chromatography; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry - methods; GC–MS technique; Halogenated; Halonitromethanes; headspace analysis; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated - chemistry; Hydrocarbons, Halogenated - analysis; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Linear Models; liquid-liquid extraction; Liquid-phase microextraction; mass spectrometry; Medical sciences; microextraction; Nitro Compounds - chemistry; Pollution; Reproducibility of Results; Sensitivity and Specificity; Solvents; Spectroscopy; Toxicology; Volatile compounds; Water; Water - chemistry; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water sample; Water treatment and pollution; Halonitromethanes; GC–MS technique; Water sample; Liquid-phase microextraction; Water; Drinking water; Chemical analysis; Chlorination; Solvent extraction; Chemical enrichment; Ozonization; Sample preparation; Swimming pool; GC―MS technique; Halogen Organic compounds; Trace analysis; Drinking water treatment; Liquid liquid extraction; Coupled method; Disinfection; Gas chromatography; Water quality; Headspace; Water pollution; Liquid liquid microextraction; By product; Mass spectrometry; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0021-9673; 1873-3778
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2011.02.056

As halonitromethanes (HNMs) have begun to play an increasingly important role as disinfection by-products, the development of a highly sensitive method for their analysis has become a priority. The mass spectrometric behavior of the 9 HNMs revealed that trihalonitromethanes are more unstable than di- or monohalonitromethanes under common chromatographic conditions. The absence of a comprehensive method for HNMs has given rise to the development of the first method for the whole array of these species, involving the selection of a solventless technique. Single drop microextraction in the headspace mode (HS-SDME) was selected as it is inexpensive and easy to operate. Comparative measurements through EPA liquid–liquid extraction (LLE) method for halogenated volatile compounds, show this approach to be superior to the manual LLE procedure (the average limits of detection (LODs) for the 9 HNMs were 0.5 and 1 μg/L for the HS-SDME and EPA methods, respectively), adequate precision (8.2 and 7.0% for HS-SDME and EPA methods, respectively) and does not consume excessive solvent since the total extract (∼2 μL) was injected completely into the GC–MS instrument. The method was used to measure HNMs in treated water and the results were compared to the EPA method in parallel.