Prior to their use in manufacturing, consumer product chemicals are analyzed for fate, transport and toxicity by various government organizations. The EPA Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program (EDSP) plays a substantial role in this screening by examining endocrine activity and endocrine disrupting characteristics. To date however, there has been little research investigating endocrine activity of products formed during degradation of consumer product ingredients, such as occurs within wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) that are designed to achieve substantial reductions in concentrations of diverse organic compounds. Utilizing an effects-directed analysis of endocrine active compounds in sewage sludge allows us to conduct a “bottom up” search for compounds that are not currently suspected as endocrine disrupting, and therefore not on the EDSP radar; or are transformation products originating from active ingredients found in consumer products. Twelve wastewater treatment facilities in California have provided sewage sludge samples for this research. This presentation will highlight the High Resolution LC-ESI-qTOF-MS non-targeted analysis used to identify constituents present in the majority of the samples, representing their ubiquitous use and universal persistence throughout California. With these commonly identified constituents, an effects-directed analysis will help further narrow molecular features associated with endocrine activity and potentially environmental toxicity.

Identifying universally present consumer product constituents in California sewage sludge by high resolution LC-ESI-qTOF-MS

255th National Meeting (2018)

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