Bisphenol analogues in Chinese bottled water: Quantification and potential risk analysis

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Polycarbonate (PC) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as the package materials have been widely used for Chinese bottled water, from which estrogenic bisphenol analogues might migrate into bottled water. Therefore, there is a strong need to investigate the occurrence and potential risk of such estrogenic bisphenol analogues in Chinese bottled waters. In this study, a GC–MS method was first established and validated for determination of trace-level ten kinds of bisphenol analogues, including bisphenol A (BPA), bisphenol B (BPB), bisphenol C (BPC), bisphenol E (BPE), bisphenol F (BPF), bisphenol P (BPP), bisphenol S (BPS), bisphenol Z (BPZ), bisphenol AP (BPAP), and bisphenol AF (BPAF). BPA was detected in all eleven brands of PET bottled waters with concentrations of 12.4–44.9 ng/L. Some bisphenol analogues were detected in PET bottled waters, and the average concentrations of BPA, BPE, and BPAF in PET bottled waters were found to be 20.8, 1.8, and 2.2 ng/L, respectively. The other eight bisphenol analogues were not detected in PET bottled waters. On the other hand, BPA was detected with high concentrations of 111.8 to 6452.8 ng/L in ten brands of PC bottled water. The average concentrations of BPA, BPS, BPAP, and BPAF were determined to be 1394.3, 1.9, 1.4 and 1.0 ng/L, respectively, while the other seven bisphenol analogues were not detected. High BPA concentration detected in PC bottled waters would remarkably increase human BPA daily intake through daily consumption of such bottled waters. Meanwhile, high estrogen equivalence (EEQ) in PC bottled waters of China is mainly due to the presence of BPA, which may imply adverse effect on human. Therefore, further investigation should be dedicated to assess PC bottled water-associated BPA risks in a more holistic manner.