DETERMINATION OF ALKYL SULFATES IN THE INFLUENT AND EFFLUENT OF A LABORATORY ACTIVATED-SLUDGE PLANT BY HPLC

A method for the determination of alkyl sulfates by HPLC is described. The method is based on the decomposition of the alkyl sulfates by sulfuric acid, extraction of the resulting alkyl alcohols, derivatization of the alcohols by phenyl isocyanate, and reversed-phase HPLC with UV-detection. The described method is well suited to investigate the biodegradability of alkyl sulfates in laboratory activated sludge plants. An advantage of the HPLC procedure in comparison to the determination of methylene-blue-active substances (MBAS) is that informations about the kinetics of the biodegradation, the structure of substances and possible metabolites can be obtained.