Screening for polybrominated diphenyl ethers in biological samples by reversed-phase fast HPLC-ICP MS

Abstract

The coupling of fast (ultrahigh pressure) liquid chromatography with ICP MS fitted with an octopole collision cell was developed for the separation and detection of ten polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) (47, 85, 100, 138, 155, 201, 206, 207, 208, 209). The compounds were eluted within 12 min using an acetonitrile-rich (70–95%) mobile phase at 1.5 mL min⁻¹ which could be introduced directly into an inductively coupled plasma owing to a new plasma frequency-marching RF generator. The limit of detection (as bromine) at these conditions was 17 ± 1 ng mL⁻¹ and was independent of the mobile phase composition. The method was applied to the screening metabolites of the high molecular weight PBDE decabromodiphenyl ether in rat liver and faeces and was validated by independent HPLC with radioactivity detection. It offered, as a main advantage over molecular MS, the virtual independence of the signal intensity of the molecular structure of the compound, and thus the possibility to detect unknown metabolites and control bromine mass balance.