Perchlorate has been used as an oxidizer in rockets, munitions, and fireworks since the 1950s. It has been found to cause thyroid dysfunction, and has been linked to tumors in humans. Perchlorate is regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act (2011). Additionally, numerous U.S. states have promulgated enforceable standards for the levels of perchlorate in drinking water. Massachusetts and California have established standards for drinking water of 2 μg/L and 6 μg/L, respectively. US EPA Method 332.0 — Ion Chromatography with Suppressed Conductivity and Electrospray Ionization/Mass Spectrometry is one of the most sensitive and robust characterization methods available for perchlorate determinations. Our study uses a Thermo Scientific™ Dionex™ IonPac™ AS20 column set on a recently introduced compact IC system coupled with a recently introduced single quadrupole mass spectrometer. Ionization improvements to the electrospray source eliminate the need to add organic solvent to enhance detection. Method detection limit (MDL) values in deionized water are 20- 60 ng/L (Figure 1), and MDLs in high-ionic-strength matrix containing 1000 mg/L each of chloride, carbonate, and sulfate are 30- 60 ng/L. The calibration curves for perchlorate in high-ionic-strength matrix at 101 m/z over the range of 125-5000 ng/L using the internal standard and external methods showed good linearity with the coefficient of determination being 0.9993, and 0.9998 respectively. Single laboratory precision in drinking waters, as measured by RSD, was &lt;5% at concentrations &gt;200 ng/L perchlorate, and accuracy, was 95.6-111.2% for concentrations ≥125 ng/L perchlorate. Single laboratory precision in high-ionic-strength matrix, was &lt;5% at concentrations ≥125 ng/L perchlorate, and accuracy, was 100-103.5% for concentrations ≥200 ng/L perchlorate.

Determination of perchlorate by US EPA Method 332.0 using a compact ion chromatography system coupled with mass spectrometry (IC-MS)

255th National Meeting (2018)

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