Half the Column, Same Chromatogram

Maintain Resolution of BDE 49 and BDE 71 With Proper Method Translation After Trimming an Rtx®-1614 Column for Maintenance

Abstract

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are additive flame retardants that are used in many household and office products, including furniture, electronics, and textiles. These lipophilic compounds have been found to be persistent and bioaccumulative in nature. Due to their toxicity and ubiquitous presence, PBDEs are included in many monitoring efforts across a wide array of biological and environmental sample matrices. The analysis of PBDEs is challenging due to structural isomers that need to be chromatographically separated and thermally-labile compounds of interest that may breakdown during gas chromatography. Furthermore, nonvolatile material may still persist even in cleaned final extracts, requiring GC column and inlet maintenance to be performed. PBDEs included in EPA Method 1614 are well resolved on a 15 m x 0.25 mm x 0.10 μm Rtx^®-1614 GC column that was specifically designed to meet method resolution requirements of less than 40% valley height between BDE 49 and BDE 71. The selectivity of this column, in combination with properly translating the original GC method, allowed the column to be trimmed significantly for maintenance (7.9 m) while maintaining the method resolution criterion. This allows chromatographers to extend GC column lifetime.