Determination of polychlorinated biphenyls in waste oil by gas-liquid chromatography

Abstract

A 0.1 g portion of waste oil is cleaned up by silica gel chromatography followed by dimethylformamide-hexane partitioning and chromatography on a de-activated neutral alumina column. The purified extract is examined for PCBs by either packed-column or capillary-column gas chromatography using either electon-capture or Hall electrolytic conductivity detectors. Recoveries at the 10 mg kg^–1 level are in the range 66–98% and the coefficient of variation is typically 12%. A reporting limit of 5 mg kg^–1 is readily attainable and PCBs can be detected down to about 1 mg kg^–1.