Analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in atmospheric deposition and snow samples by solid-phase disk extraction

An extraction method for the quantitative analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in aqueous samples has been evaluated. The analytical methodology includes the sample filtration through glass fiber filter and subsequent extraction of dissolved phase compounds by C18 solid-phase disk extraction. Dependence of extraction efficiency on factors such as pollutant concentrations, sample volume, and stability during storage has been investigated. Mean extraction efficiencies of 97% for total PBDEs (13 tri- to heptabrominated congeners at spiking levels in the range of 15–90 pg) with a RSD between 9 and 20% were achieved. Higher recoveries were observed for the more volatile PBDEs (112%) in relation to more brominated congeners (88%). The developed methodology was successfully applied to the analysis of these compounds in atmospheric deposition and snow samples from remote sites in Europe with method detection and quantitation limits in the range of 2.1–10 pg L−1 for almost all congeners, which allow the determination of PBDEs in remote areas with levels in the range of low to medium pg L−1 for ΣPBDEs.