Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry
Detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) is crucial in environmental mitigation and remediation of these persistent pollutants. We demonstrate that time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) is a viable technique to analyze and identify these substances at parts per tr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Chemistry |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fchem.2023.1253685/full |
| _version_ | 1797665314763177984 |
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| author | Xiao-Ying Yu Cuiyun Yang Jun Gao John Xiong Xiao Sui Lirong Zhong Yuchen Zhang Jiyoung Son |
| author_facet | Xiao-Ying Yu Cuiyun Yang Jun Gao John Xiong Xiao Sui Lirong Zhong Yuchen Zhang Jiyoung Son |
| author_sort | Xiao-Ying Yu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) is crucial in environmental mitigation and remediation of these persistent pollutants. We demonstrate that time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) is a viable technique to analyze and identify these substances at parts per trillion (ppt) level in real field samples without complicated sample preparation due to its superior surface sensitivity. Several representative PFAS compounds, such as perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA), perfluoheptanoic acid (PFHpA), and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), and real-world groundwater samples collected from monitoring wells installed around at a municipal wastewater treatment plant located in Southern California were analyzed in this work. ToF-SIMS spectral comparison depicts sensitive identification of pseudo-molecular ions, characteristic of reference PFASs. Additionally, principal component analysis (PCA) shows clear discrimination among real samples and reference compounds. Our results show that characteristic molecular ion and fragments peaks can be used to identify PFASs. Furthermore, SIMS two-dimensional (2D) images directly exhibit the distribution of perfluorocarboxylic acid (PFCA) and PFOS in simulated mixtures and real wastewater samples. Such findings indicate that ToF-SIMS is useable to determine PFAS compounds in complex environmental water samples. In conclusion, ToF-SIMS provides simple sample preparation and high sensitivity in mass spectral imaging, offering an alternative solution for environmental forensic analysis of PFASs in wastewater in the future. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T19:42:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1c90abf82c1d44a2b0b3300404b01685 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-2646 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T19:42:10Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Chemistry |
| spelling | doaj.art-1c90abf82c1d44a2b0b3300404b016852023-10-06T07:02:23ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Chemistry2296-26462023-10-011110.3389/fchem.2023.12536851253685Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometryXiao-Ying Yu0Cuiyun Yang1Jun Gao2John Xiong3Xiao Sui4Lirong Zhong5Yuchen Zhang6Jiyoung Son7Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge, TN, United StatesOak Ridge National Laboratory, Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge, TN, United StatesOak Ridge National Laboratory, Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge, TN, United StatesHaley & Aldrich Inc., Costa Mesa, CA, United StatesCollege of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, ChinaPacific Northwest National Laboratory, Energy and Environment Directorate, Richland, WA, United StatesOak Ridge National Laboratory, Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge, TN, United StatesPacific Northwest National Laboratory, Energy and Environment Directorate, Richland, WA, United StatesDetection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) is crucial in environmental mitigation and remediation of these persistent pollutants. We demonstrate that time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) is a viable technique to analyze and identify these substances at parts per trillion (ppt) level in real field samples without complicated sample preparation due to its superior surface sensitivity. Several representative PFAS compounds, such as perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA), perfluoheptanoic acid (PFHpA), and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), and real-world groundwater samples collected from monitoring wells installed around at a municipal wastewater treatment plant located in Southern California were analyzed in this work. ToF-SIMS spectral comparison depicts sensitive identification of pseudo-molecular ions, characteristic of reference PFASs. Additionally, principal component analysis (PCA) shows clear discrimination among real samples and reference compounds. Our results show that characteristic molecular ion and fragments peaks can be used to identify PFASs. Furthermore, SIMS two-dimensional (2D) images directly exhibit the distribution of perfluorocarboxylic acid (PFCA) and PFOS in simulated mixtures and real wastewater samples. Such findings indicate that ToF-SIMS is useable to determine PFAS compounds in complex environmental water samples. In conclusion, ToF-SIMS provides simple sample preparation and high sensitivity in mass spectral imaging, offering an alternative solution for environmental forensic analysis of PFASs in wastewater in the future.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fchem.2023.1253685/fullPFASPFOsmolecular identificationToF-SIMSgroundwaterwastewater |
| spellingShingle | Xiao-Ying Yu Cuiyun Yang Jun Gao John Xiong Xiao Sui Lirong Zhong Yuchen Zhang Jiyoung Son Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry Frontiers in Chemistry PFAS PFOs molecular identification ToF-SIMS groundwater wastewater |
| title | Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry |
| title_full | Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry |
| title_fullStr | Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry |
| title_full_unstemmed | Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry |
| title_short | Molecular detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry |
| title_sort | molecular detection of per and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water using time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry |
| topic | PFAS PFOs molecular identification ToF-SIMS groundwater wastewater |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fchem.2023.1253685/full |
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