Abstract
A validated analytical method for the determination of phthalates (DBP, BBP, DEHP, DNOP, DINP and DIDP) in plastics was described and applied to 20 toys in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam. Phthalates in the sample were extracted in a mixture of acetone and hexane and analyzed by GC-FID. Limits of detection (LOD) and limits of quantification (LOQ) of the analysis method for DBP, BBP, DEHP và DNOP in the PVC plastic were from 0.0011% to 0.0014% and from 0.0028 to 0.0046%, respectively. Recoveries of DBP, BBP, DEHP và DNOP in PVC and PP at two spiked concentrations (0.1% and 0.01%) ranged from 86.6% to 91.7% with the relative standard deviation (%RSD) were from 2.5% to 8.7%. Wide ranges of linearity of standard curves were obtained from 0.5 mg/L to 100 mg/L for DBP, BBP, DEHP and DNOP and from 25 mg/L to 1000 mg/L for DINP and DIDP with R2 > 0.999. The studied method was a reliable, rapid, easy and cheap method and permitted to determine the restricted phthalates in plastic toys in compliance with European Regulation (No 1907/2006). The method was applied to determine phthalates in 20 toys in HoChiMinh city, Vietnam. Phthalates were found in almost soft PVC toys with high concentrations.
Highlights
Phthalate or phthalate ester is a general term for esterified substances of phthalic acid and alcohol
As diisononyl phthalate (DINP) and di-isodecyl phthalate (DIDP) consist of different isomers, low resolutions of peaks of these phthalates were reported [2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9]
The peak of DNOP are overlapped with peaks of DINP
Summary
Phthalate or phthalate ester is a general term for esterified substances of phthalic acid and alcohol. Phthalate esters are added to plastics to make these materials more flexible and elastic. Phthalates have toxicity such as carcinogenesis, immunization failure or reproduction failure. The high concentrations of phthalates in toys will harm children’s health. The REACH (“Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals”) Directive (EC No 1907/2006) restricts dibutyl phthalate (DBP), butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP), di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) to 0.1% in all toys and di-octylphthalate (DNOP), diisononyl phthalate (DINP), and di-isodecyl phthalate (DIDP) to the same percentage in mouthing toys [1].
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