Analysis of PFAS Compounds in Fish Tissue Using Offline Supercritical Fluid Extraction and LC-MS/MS

Introduction

Per and Poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetic compounds that are found in a wide range of industrial and consumer products. Due to the strong nature of the carbon-fluorine bond, these compounds are resistant to degradation and have been found to accumulate in fish, wildlife and multiple environmental samples (ex. water, soil…), posing a significant health risk to humans. Current sample preparation techniques for PFAS analysis are laborious and not easily automated. In this study, supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) was evaluated as an alternative sample preparation technique for the extraction of eighteen PFAS compounds from fish tissue, as a preconcentration step prior to their analysis by LC-MS/MS.