Determination of elemental sulfur in environmental samples by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A new analytical method for the determination of elemental sulfur using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was developed. Elemental sulfur, S0, was extracted from a fresh sediment sample with the aid of CCl4. One microliter of CCl4 extract was directly injected into and analyzed by GC-MS. In comparison with the few existing methods for S0 determination, this technique was found to be much simpler, faster, more sensitive and interference free. Good correlation coefficients (0.996-1.00) for the S0 calibration curves were obtained in the concentration range of 1.0 μM-10.0 mM by using appropriate MS parameters. The absolute limit of detection of this method was 96 pg S0 and the precision (RSD) was usually better than 7.0%. The method was used in the determination of S0 in 5 different lake sediments collected in the region of Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.