ENVR 161 |
| Caffeine can be used as a chemical marker in water quality studies to improve the accuracy in detecting sources of wastewater pollution. This application, however, is still limited by the lack of standardized and validated methods that can readily be implemented in environmental laboratories. This study describes the optimization and validation of a method using solid-phase extraction (SPE) and GC-MS. The SPE was optimized by evaluating different types of extraction sorbents. Extraction using the octadecyl disk showed a reasonable performance, but it dramatically improved with the sulfonated styrenedivinylbenzene disk. The increased extraction efficiency is explained in terms of the properties of sorbent and caffeine. Method detection limits, capacities and method validation data indicate a robust and accurate method for detecting caffeine in surface waters. Data of the application in several source tracking studies illustrate the utility of this method to expand the use of caffeine as a chemical marker. |
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General Papers
6:00 PM-8:00 PM, Wednesday, August 22, 2007 BCEC -- Exhibit Hall - B2, Poster
Division of Environmental Chemistry |