Liquid chromatography mass spectrometry determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in environmental solid extracts after phospholipid removal and on-line turbulent flow chromatography purification

Abstract

An on-line TFC (Turbulent Flow Chromatography) clean up procedures coupled with UHPLC–MS/MS (Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry) multi-residue method was developed for the simultaneous determination of 8 perfluroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCA, from 5 to 12 carbon atoms) and 3 perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids (PFSA, from 4 to 8 carbon atoms) in environmental solid matrices. Fast sample preparation procedure was based on a sonication-assisted extraction with acetonitrile. Phospholipids in biological samples were fully removed by an off-line SPE purification before injection, using HybridSPE® Phospholipid Ultra cartridges.The development of the on-line TFC clean-up procedure regarded the choice of the stationary phase, the optimization of the mobile phase composition, flow rate and injected volume.The validation of the optimized method included the evaluation of matrix effects, accuracy and reproducibility. Signal suppression in the analysis of fortified extracts ranged from 1 to 60%, and this problem was overcome by using isotopic dilution. Since no certified reference materials were available for PFAS in these matrices, accuracy was evaluated by recoveries on spiked clam samples which were 98–133% for PFCAs and 40–60% for PFSAs. MLDs and MLQs ranged from 0.03 to 0.3ngg−1 wet weight and from 0.1 to 0.9ngg−1 wet weight respectively. Repeatability (intra-day precision) and reproducibility (inter-day precision) showed RSD from 3 to 13% and from 4 to 27% respectively. Validated on-line TFC/UHPLC–MS/MS method has been applied for the determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in different solid matrices (sediment, fish, bivalves and bird yolk).