A fast and simple PFAS extraction method utilizing HR–CS–GFMAS for soil samples

Simon, Fabian; Gehrenkemper, Lennart; Au, Marcus von der; Wittwer, Philipp; Roesch, Philipp; Pfeifer, Jens; Cossmer, Antje; Meermann, Björn

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133922

Cited by 33 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…This is a so-called targeted analysis approach. Total fluorine (TF) and extractable organofluorines (EOF) can be measured with different instruments, for example, combustion ion chromatography (CIC) [25][26][27] or high-resolution continuum source graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR-CS-GFMAS) [28][29][30][31][32]. EOF measurement with both techniques provide comparable results; however, analysis with HR-CS-GFMAS was found to be less time-consuming and more sensitive [29].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

EOF and target PFAS analysis in surface waters affected by sewage treatment effluents in Berlin, Germany

et al. 2023

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Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are emerging organic pollutants and can occur in surface and groundwater. To identify the degree of pollution in surface water with PFAS, often targeted HPLC–ESI–MS/MS has been employed in which commonly 30–40 compounds are analyzed. However, other PFAS and organofluorines remain undetected. We sampled surface water of the river Spree and the Teltow Canal in Berlin, Germany, which are affected by the effluent discharge of wastewater treatment plants. Here, we employed high-resolution continuum source graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR-CS-GFMAS) for measuring extractable organofluorines (EOF) and compared in a mass balance approach the total fluorine to the identified and quantified PFAS from the targeted analysis. The analysis highlights that the EOF are in the range expected for an urban river system (Winchell et al. in Sci Total Environ 774, 2021). However, downstream of an effluent discharge, the EOF increased by one order of magnitude, e.g., 40.3 to 574 ng F L−1, along the Teltow Canal. From our target analytes, mostly short-chained perfluorinated carboxylic acids and sulfonates occur in the water, which however makes up less than 10% of the EOF. The increase in EOF in the Teltow Canal correlates well with the increase of perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), indicating that PFHxA is characteristic for the discharged EOF but not responsible for the increase. Hence, it points to PFHxA precursor discharge. The study highlights that EOF screening using HR-CS-GFMAS is necessary to identify the full scale of pollution with regard to PFAS and other organofluorines such as pharmaceutical compounds from the effluent of WWTPs.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

EOF and target PFAS analysis in surface waters affected by sewage treatment effluents in Berlin, Germany

et al. 2023

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“…For the overall procedure of EOF determination in water samples after SPE enrichment, Metzger et al [292] report an LOQ of 18 ng F/L, which seems sufficiently low for monitoring surface waters. For EOF determination in soils and sediments with HR-CS GF MAS, the extraction method was optimized and simplified (four times with acidified methanol in an ultrasonic bath), such that an additional SPE step is unnecessary [294]. This achieves an LOQ for the overall method of 10.3 µg F/kg.…”

Section: Extractable Organically Bound Fluorine (Eof)mentioning

confidence: 99%

PFAS: forever chemicals—persistent, bioaccumulative and mobile. Reviewing the status and the need for their phase out and remediation of contaminated sites

Brunn

Arnold²,

Körner

et al. 2023

Environ Sci Eur

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Background Per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) have received increasing scientific and political attention in recent years. Several thousand commercially produced compounds are used in numerous products and technical processes. Due to their extreme persistence in the environment, humans and all other life forms are, therefore, increasingly exposed to these substances. In the following review, PFAS will be examined comprehensively. Results The best studied PFAS are carboxylic and sulfonic acids with chain lengths of C4 to C14, particularly perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS). These substances are harmful to aquatic fauna, insects, and amphibians at concentrations of a few µg/L or less, accumulate in organisms, and biomagnify in food webs. Humans, as the final link in numerous food chains, are subjected to PFAS uptake primarily through food and drinking water. Several PFAS have multiple toxic effects, particularly affecting liver, kidney, thyroid, and the immune system. The latter effect is the basis for the establishment of a tolerable weekly dose of only 4.4 ng/kg body weight for the sum of the four representatives PFOA, PFOS, perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in 2020. Exposure estimates and human biomonitoring show that this value is frequently reached, and in many cases exceeded. PFAS are a major challenge for analysis, especially of products and waste: single-substance analyses capture only a fragment of the large, diverse family of PFAS. As a consequence, sum parameters have gained increasing importance. The high mobility of per and polyfluorinated carboxylic and sulfonic acids makes soil and groundwater pollution at contaminated sites a problem. In general, short-chain PFAS are more mobile than long-chain ones. Processes for soil and groundwater purification and drinking water treatment are often ineffective and expensive. Recycling of PFAS-containing products such as paper and food packaging leads to carryover of the contaminants. Incineration requires high temperatures to completely destroy PFAS. After PFOA, PFOS and a few other perfluorinated carboxylic and sulfonic acids were regulated internationally, many manufacturers and users switched to other PFAS: short-chain representatives, per- and polyfluorinated oxo carboxylic acids, telomeric alcohols and acids. Analytical studies show an increase in environmental concentrations of these chemicals. Ultra-short PFAS (chain length C1–C3) have not been well studied. Among others, trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) is present globally in rapidly increasing concentrations. Conclusions The substitution of individual PFAS recognized as hazardous by other possibly equally hazardous PFAS with virtually unknown chronic toxicity can, therefore, not be a solution. The only answer is a switch to fluorine-free alternatives for all applications in which PFAS are not essential.

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“…EOF measurements afford a CIC instrument, which is less often part of the standard equipment in environmental laboratories, while, e.g., LC-MS/MS is usually available in all laboratories analysing PFASs. Regarding the sensitivity, EOF methods typically show limits of quantification (LOQs) in the one-or two-digit ppb range [30,50], while TOP assay methods show LOQs in the low ppb range or even lower [29,48,49], thus representing the most sensitive approach among sum parameters for organofluorine compounds in soil.…”

Section: Comparison Of Top Assay Methods To Other Sum Parameters For ...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Digging deep—implementation, standardisation and interpretation of a total oxidisable precursor (TOP) assay within the regulatory context of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in soil

et al. 2022

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Over the past decades, thousands of different per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) have been produced and applied in various industrial processes and consumer products. Their structural diversity has reached a level that cannot be covered by classical target screening methods for individual compounds. Large-scale contaminations of soil, however, require the need to adapt new analytical methods that can describe a contamination more comprehensively. While sum parameters such as the total oxidisable precursor (TOP) assay have been developed in the past years, they are not yet applied in the regulatory context of PFASs.In this commentary, we provide an overview on different approaches of the TOP assay as well as its benefits and disadvantages to other sum parameters for PFASs in soil samples. Furthermore, we elaborate its opportunities and its challenges that need to be tackled to implement the TOP assay as a regulatory tool. With several different approaches of the TOP assay being available, a sound and standardised method needs to be agreed upon and more research is necessary to better describe the method. Although the complexity of PFAS contaminations in soil cannot be fully covered by any analytical method alone, the TOP assay can provide valuable data to detect and characterise soil contamination as an inventory for subsequent remediation measures. Therefore, the TOP assay should be implemented as a useful tool both in research and in the regulatory context of PFASs.

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A fast and simple PFAS extraction method utilizing HR–CS–GFMAS for soil samples

Cited by 33 publications

References 28 publications

EOF and target PFAS analysis in surface waters affected by sewage treatment effluents in Berlin, Germany

EOF and target PFAS analysis in surface waters affected by sewage treatment effluents in Berlin, Germany

PFAS: forever chemicals—persistent, bioaccumulative and mobile. Reviewing the status and the need for their phase out and remediation of contaminated sites

Digging deep—implementation, standardisation and interpretation of a total oxidisable precursor (TOP) assay within the regulatory context of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in soil

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