Qualitative Detection of Selected Designer Drugs and Relevant Metabolites in Environmental Water Samples

Abstract

Designer drugs are compounds which have been synthetically derived from illicit drugs. After consumption, drugs and their metabolites are introduced into the sewage water which is treated and disposed into the environment. A combined target, suspect and nontarget workflow was created to detect designer drugs in environmental water samples. Multiple water samples were spiked with an unknown mixture of drugs and metabolites to assess the efficiency of the method. Samples were collected from sewage influent and effluent pipes, downstream from a sewage outfall and reclaimed water. Analysis was conducted with high resolution MS using the QExactive Orbitrap. Screening was performed using a database compiled in-house using TraceFinder EFS. Structure confirmation was achieved using MassFrontier. Target drugs and their metabolites were detected in sewage influent but not in sewage effluent, downstream of the effluent pipe, or in reclaimed water. The workflow was adequate to detect designer drugs in multiple water matrices at concentrations as low as 20ppt.