COMPARISON OF 4 METHODS FOR THE DETERMINATION OF POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC-HYDROCARBONS IN AIRBORNE-PARTICULATES

High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with ultraviolet and fluorescence detection and capillary gas chromatography (GC) with flame ionization and mass spectrometric (MS) detection were used to determine nineteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in airborne particulates. Sixteen of them are included in the prioritary pollutants list of the US Environmental Protection Agency. Five C-18-bonded silica HPLC columns and five GC capillary columns were checked to select the best conditions for the PAH mixtures. Samples were extracted by adding an organic solvent and sonication. The recoveries obtained were >75%. These results are compared with those obtained using Soxhlet extraction. The method was applied to the determination of PAHs at five sampling sites in the city of Valencia during 1 week. The results confirm that the best detection limits are obtained by HPLC-fluorescence, which is also the simplest, shortest and most economical method. In spite of its high maintenance cost, GC-MS in the single-ion monitoring mode is also suitable for the determination of PAHs in real samples using a low-volume system.