Cover: The MAK Collection for Occupational Health and Safety

The MAK Collection for Occupational Health and Safety

German Research Foundation – Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area
(MAK Commission)

ISSN 2509-2383



Chloressigsäuren – Bestimmung von Mono-, Di- und Trichloressigsäure in der Luft am Arbeitsplatz mittels Hochleistungsflüssigkeitschromatographie (HPLC-UV)

Luftanalysen-Methode

Sven Schuchardt1 (Methodenentwicklung)
Mareike Gora1 (Methodenentwicklung)
Ute Sänger1 (Methodenentwicklung)
Dietmar Breuer2 (Methodenprüfung)
  Ralph Hebisch3 (Leitung der Arbeitsgruppe „Luftanalysen“ der Ständigen Senatskommission zur Prüfung gesundheitsschädlicher Arbeitsstoffe, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  Andrea Hartwig4 (Vorsitz der Ständigen Senatskommission zur Prüfung gesundheitsschädlicher Arbeitsstoffe, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  MAK Commission5

1 Fraunhofer-Institut für Toxikologie und Experimentelle Medizin (ITEM), Nikolai-Fuchs-Straße 1, 30625 Hannover, Deutschland
2 Institut für Arbeitsschutz der Deutschen Gesetzlichen Unfallversicherung (IFA), Alte Heerstraße 111, 53757 Sankt Augustin, Deutschland
3 Bundesanstalt für Arbeitsschutz und Arbeitsmedizin (BAuA), Friedrich-Henkel-Weg 1-25, 44149 Dortmund, Deutschland
4 Institut für Angewandte Biowissenschaften, Abteilung Lebensmittelchemie und Toxikologie, Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (KIT), Adenauerring 20a, Geb. 50.41, 76131 Karlsruhe, Deutschland
5 Ständige Senatskommission zur Prüfung gesundheitsschädlicher Arbeitsstoffe, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Kennedyallee 40, 53175 Bonn, Deutschland

Abstract

This analytical method is a validated measurement procedure for the determination of monochloroacetic acid [79-11-8], dichloroacetic acid [79-43-6] and trichloroacetic acid [76-03-9] in workplace air in a concentration range of one tenth up to twice the currently valid occupational exposure limit values (OELVs) in Germany of 2.0, 1.1 and 1.4 mg/m3, respectively. For sampling, a defined volume of air is drawn through a quartz fibre filter which is alkaline-impregnated with barium hydroxide and inserted in a sampling system for inhalable particles. The flow rate is set to 1 l/min and sampling is performed over 2 hours (which corresponds to a sampling volume of 120 l). The collected chloroacetic acids deposited on the filter are extracted by means of an aqueous phosphate buffer solution and analysed by high performance liquid chromatography with UV detection. Quantitative determination is based on multiple-point calibrations with external standards. For an air sample volume of 120 litres, the relative limit of quantification (LOQ) is in the range from 0.005 mg/m3 for monochloroacetic acid and trichloroacetic acid to 0.002 mg/m3 for dichloroacetic acid. The average recoveries of the three chloroacetic acids range from 88.6% to 101.5% and the expanded uncertainty is less than 29%.


Keywords

chloroacetic acids, air analyses, analytical method, workplace measurement, hazardous substance, high-performance liquid chromatography, UV detection, HPLC-UV, quartz fibre filter, liquid desorption