Multi-residue analysis of pharmaceutical compounds in aqueous samples

• Published in: Journal of Chromatography A 2008-01, Vol.1177 (1), p.150-158
• Main Authors: Togola, Anne, Budzinski, Hélène
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis methods; Analytical chemistry; Applied sciences; Chemistry; Chromatographic methods and physical methods associated with chromatography; Drinking water and swimming-pool water. Desalination; Drinking waters; Drug Residues - analysis; Exact sciences and technology; Gas chromatographic methods; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS); Marine waters; Multi-residue analysis; Natural water pollution; Other wastewaters; Pharmaceuticals; Pollution; Reference Standards; Solid-phase extraction (SPE); Surface waters; Urban wastewaters; Wastewaters; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water treatment and pollution
• ISSN: 0021-9673
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2007.10.105

Pharmaceutical compounds are nowadays an emerging group of organic pollutants in aquatic systems. Several methodologies have already been published to measure these pollutants in the environment, showing the difficulties to take into account the various compounds belonging to numerous therapeutical and chemical groups. In order to develop environmental monitoring, there is a need for a less costly and time-consuming multi-component procedure. The work presented here deals with the development of an extraction procedure which enables the measurement of a wide spectrum of pharmaceuticals at trace levels (ng l −1) with quite simple equipment (i.e. GC–MS with single quadruple as analyzer). The analyzed compounds comprise anti-inflammatories, antidepressants and hypolipidic drugs. The reliability and sensitivity have been tested on 18 different compounds (7 basic compounds and 11 acidic drugs) extracted simultaneously and analyzed by GC–MS. The optimized procedure has been successfully applied to the analysis of wastewaters, surface waters and drinking waters from the following areas: first the Cortiou rocky inlet, in the Mediterranean Sea (South coast of France), highly impacted by the Marseilles wastewater treatment plant effluent and secondly the Hérault watershed by studying drinking water, surface water and wastewater. In both cases, the level of pharmaceuticals was totally unknown. Results obtained have demonstrated the suitability of the method for multi-residue analysis of different types of water matrices.