Analysis of Perfluoroalkyl Carboxylates and Perfluoroalkyl Sulfonates in Environmental Water by In-Port Arylation Gas Chromatography-Electron Impact Ionization-Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

Abstract Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are persistent environmental pollutants that have been used for various purposes. Although PFASs can pollute the environment in a variety of areas related to use, storage, and disposal of their products, there are insufficient data on the extent of PFASs pollution outside industrialized countries with their manufacturing facilities. Most of analyses depend on high-cost liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. In this study, we established a method to analyze anionic PFASs using gas chromatography-electron impact ionization-mass spectrometry with in-port arylation by diaryl iodonium. Extraction of PFASs from water samples was performed using solid phase extraction with reverse phase sorbent. Fourteen PFAS compounds could be detected from spiked water samples, and the detection limit ranged from 3.1 to 8.1 ng L− 1. Using this method, we analyzed groundwater samples from Okinawa Island, Japan, and detected PFASs up to a total concentration of 1.9 µg L− 1. This method uses relatively inexpensive analytical equipment, hence it can possibly enable surveys on PFAS contaminations in a wide range of regions and opportunities.