Abstract
Selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) provides rapid, sensitive quantitation of benzene in commercial personal care products via headspace analysis. Matrix effects due to the complex and variable compositions of the personal care products are effectively addressed through utilization of standard additions in a matrix-matching approach. The high sample throughput of SIFT-MS means that calibration curves for each matrix are generated rapidly compared to gas chromatographybased analyses, making the standard additions approach far more economic when using SIFTMS with faster time to first result and 12 samples screened per hour thereafter. In this study, four commercial personal care product matrices were tested: a crushed tablet, a syrup, a creamy lotion (called ‘lotion’) and an oily lotion. Benzene was detected from ca. 20 to 600 parts per billion (ppb) in the four commercial products with good repeatability. The ease with which SIFT-MS rapidly analyzes benzene with high specificity in diverse matrices means that it is ideally suited to product quality control – both in the testing laboratory and on the process line.
Introduction
Benzene has recently been detected as a contaminant in many commercial personal care products (PCPs), including sunscreens, body sprays and dry shampoo (Valisure (2022); Bettenhausen (2022)). Chronic exposure to benzene is linked to a significantly increased risk of certain cancers, including leukemia. Testing for benzene and other toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in PCPs, and ultimately limiting their presence in these products, is of utmost importance and urgency.
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