Determination of polyhalogenated carbazoles in soil using gas chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass...

Polyhalogenated carbazoles (PHCZs) are emerging environmental contaminants that have caused wide concerns due to their dioxin-like toxicity and environmental persistence. It would be desirable to determine all of these chemicals using a simple analytical method. Within this study, a simple and sensitive method combining accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) with gas chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was established to simultaneously analyze eleven frequently detected PHCZs in soil, including CCZ-3, CCZ-36, CCZ-1368, CCZ-2367, BCZ-3, BCZ-27, BCZ-36, BCZ-136, BCZ-1368, 1-B-36-CCZ, 18-B-36-CCZ. The calibration curves of the target analytes showed good linearity (R² > 0.99, level = 6), and method detection limits (MDLs) ranging from 1.5 to 14.6 pg g^-1. The average recoveries of the analytes in soil samples ranged from 64% to 126% with the RSD ranging from 2.0% to 10%. The developed method was successfully used for determination of these eleven PHCZs in soil samples from a tie-dye area in southwest China. Total concentrations of these eleven PHCZs ranging up to 46.3 ng g^-1 dw. CCZ-36, BCZ-3, CCZ-3, 1-B-36-CCZ, 18-B-36-CCZ, and BCZ-1368 were the most abundant compounds in soil.