Preparation of wastewater samples for GC-MS analysis of PAHs

Standard EPA Method 8310 recommends the use of liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection for the determination of PAH compounds. Taking into consideration the advantages of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) it is important to carry out investigations to optimise wastewater preparation for qualification and quantification of PAHs using this method. The aim of the investigation was to verify the procedure of wastewater preparation for PAHs analysis using GC-MS. The method was evaluated based on experimental recovery values of individual compounds. The experiments were carried out using both raw and biologically treated wastewaters collected from a municipal treatment plant.