Simultaneous Determination of Perfluorinated Compounds in Edible Oil by Gel-Permeation Chromatography Combined with Dispersive Solid-Phase Extraction and Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

A simple analytical method was developed for the simultaneous analysis of 18 perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in edible oil. The target compounds were extracted by acetonitrile, purified by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and dispersive solid-phase extraction (DSPE) using graphitized carbon black (GCB) and octadecyl (C18), and analyzed by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ES-MS/MS) in negative ion mode. Recovery studies were performed at three fortification levels. The average recoveries of all target PFCs ranged from 60 to 129%, with an acceptable relative standard deviation (RSD) (1-20%, n = 3). The method detection limits (MDLs) ranged from 0.004 to 0.4 μg/kg, which was significantly improved compared with the existing liquid-liquid extraction and cleanup method. The method was successfully applied for the analysis of all target PFCs in edible oil samples collected from markets in Beijing, China, and the results revealed that C6-C10 perfluorocarboxylic acid (PFCAs) and C7 perfluorosulfonic acid PFSAs were the major PFCs detected in oil samples.