Analysis of selected phthalates in Canadian indoor dust collected using household vacuum and standardized sampling techniques

Abstract

Phthalates have been used extensively as plasticizers to improve the flexibility of polymers, and they also have found many industrial applications. They are ubiquitous in the environment and have been detected in a variety of environmental and biological matrices. The goal of this study was to develop a method for the determination of 17 phthalate esters in house dust. This method involved sonication extraction, sample cleanup using solid phase extraction, and isotope dilution GC/MS/MS analysis. Method detection limits (MDLs) and recoveries ranged from 0.04 to 2.93 μg/g and from 84 to 117%, respectively. The method was applied to the analysis of phthalates in 38 paired household vacuum samples (HD) and fresh dust (FD) samples. HD and FD samples compared well for the majority of phthalates detected in house dust. Data obtained from 126 household dust samples confirmed the historical widespread use of bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), with a concentration range of 36 μg/g to 3840 μg/g. Dibutyl phthalate (DBP), benzyl butyl phthalate (BzBP), diisononyl phthalate (DINP), and diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP) were also found in most samples at relatively high concentrations. Another important phthalate, diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP), was detected at a frequency of 98.4% with concentrations ranging from below its MDL of 0.51 μg/g to 69 μg/g.

Expanding the number of phthalates monitored in house dust

“…Most phthalates are not covalently bound to the polymer matrices and thus are prone to being released into the environment over time. The ubiquity of phthalates has resulted in their detection, as parent compounds or metabolites, in various environmental and biological matrices, including soil, drinking water, food, breast milk, urine, and indoor house dust [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. Phthalates have been shown to cause a number of adverse effects in laboratory animals; therefore, there is concern that they may have similar effects in humans.…”

“…We recently reported the concentrations of 17 phthalates in dust samples collected for the Canadian House Dust Study (CHDS) [6]; however, there are many other phthalates, which are not commonly monitored, including diisohexyl phthalate (DIHxP), di-nheptyl phthalate (DHepP), diisooctyl phthalate (DIOP), dinonyl phthalate (DNP) and ditridecyl phthalate (DTDP) ( Table 1). The goal of this study was to develop a method for the analysis of these targeted phthalates.…”

Detection of Hormone-Like and Genotoxic Activities in Indoor Dust from Taiwan Using a Battery of in Vitro Bioassays

“…In particular, infants that stay at home for a longer time and ingest a sufficient amount of house dust may be more vulnerable to indoor contaminants (Roberts et al, 2009). In the past decade, indoor dust has been reported to contain numerous legacy pollutants and emerging contaminants, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, phthalates, brominated flame retardants, benzotriazole ultraviolet stabilizers, antibacterial agents, polyfluoroalkyl phosphate esters, and so on (Fan et al, 2010;Deziel et al, 2012;Peng et al, 2012;Kubwabo et al, 2013;Wang et al, 2013;Chao et al, 2014;Eriksson and Kärrman, 2015;Król et al, 2014). Rudel et al (2003) have also detected 52 and 66 endocrine disrupting compounds in residential air and dust collected from 120 homes, whereas banned chlorinated pesticides were frequently found in dust as well, indicating poor indoor degradation.…”

Sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the simultaneous determination of benzyl butyl phthalate and its metabolites, monobenzyl phthalate and monobutyl phthalate, in rat plasma, urine, and various tissues collected from a toxicokinetic study

“…Since BBP is not covalently bound to the polymeric matrix, it can be released during use of these products. It has been detected in various environmental samples such as river water [1], wastewater [2], air [3], indoor dust [4], and soil [5] and is regarded as a ubiquitous environmental contaminant [6]. The developmental and reproductive toxicities of BBP, including sexual differentiation of the male offspring in rats, shortened anogenital distance, reduced testis weights, and induction of areolas, have been reported [7][8][9].…”

“…It was determined in environmental samples of wastewater by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) [2] and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) [23], river water and tap water by GC-MS [1], soil by microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography [5], particulated materials from air by GC-MS [3], and house indoor dust by GC-MS/MS [4]. It was also determined in various commercial products, e.g., plasticized toys and child care items by GC-MS [24], aerosols by ultra high-performance liquid chromatography/photodiode array detection (UHPLC/PDA) [25], cosmetics by GC/flame ionization detection (GC/FID) [26] and GC-MS [27], beverages by HPLC/ultraviolet detection (HPLC/UVD) [28] and GC-MS/MS [29], bottled water by GC/FID [30] and GC-MS [1,31], edible oils by HPLC/diode array detection (HPLC/DAD) [32], wines by GC-MS [33], parenteral nutrition samples by LC-MS [34], and foodstuffs by GC-MS [34,35].…”