Measurement of drinking water contaminants by solid phase microextraction initially quantified in source water samples by the USGS

Two adsorbent solid phase microextraction (SPME) fibers, 70 μm Carbowax divinylbenzene (CW/DVB) and 65 μm polydimethylsiloxane divinylbenzene (PDMS/DVB), were selected for the analysis of several target analytes (phenols, phosphates, phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and chlorinated pesticides) identified by the USGS in surface waters. Detection limits for standards ranged from 0.1 to 1 ng/mL for the CW/ DVB fiber and 0.1 to 2 ng/mL for the PDMS/DVB fiber for 20 of the analytes. The remaining analytes were not extracted because their polarity precluded their partition to the solid phase of the SPME fiber. Groundwater and treated water samples collected from wells in northern New Jersey were then sampled for the USGS analytes by the SPME method as well as a modified version of EPA 525.5 using C-18 bonded solid phase extraction columns. Nine of the USGS analytes - bisphenol A, bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, butylated hydroxytoluene, butlyated hydroxyanisole, diethyltoulamide, diethyl phthalate, bis(2-ethylhexyl) adipate, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, and triphenyl phosphate - were detected in groundwater samples using the CW/ DVB fiber.