Shimadzu has produced a paper presenting an evaluation of the instrumental portion of US EPA Method 537 using the Shimadzu LCMS-8060 triple quadrupole mass spectrometer with regards to the determination of selected perfluorinated alkyl acids in drinking water.
Environmental contamination has been regulated since the US EPA was established in 1970. Over the years the US EPA has developed and published methods for the analysis of different environmental pollutants using triple quadrupole liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) instrumentation. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in the analysis of Perfluorinated Compounds (PFCs).
Method
In this study, the performance of Shimadzu’s most sensitive LC-MS/MS, the LCMS-8060, was evaluated. Since extraction efficiency varies by laboratory, and by analyst, only the instrumental portion of the method was evaluated. In this study, direct injection of fortified reagent water samples diluted with methanol was performed.
Results and Discussion
Calibration ranges and estimated detection limits were well below method requirements. In addition, the chromatography was shortened from the 25 minutes in EPA 537 to less than 10 minutes without loss of resolution.
Conclusion
The Shimadzu LCMS-8060 exceeds performance criteria specified for EPA Method 537. Because of the high-sensitivity performance of the LCMS-8060, it is recommended for use for methods allowing direct injection of PFCs.
