Phthalates in Concrete

[haroldblake]

So basically... I am trying to find out what I can use to detect phthalates in water and/or algae.
http://web.biosci.utexas.edu/utex/algae ... gaeID=4089
I've asked Vernier if their Gas Chromatograph could detect phthalates and they responded that the chromatograph can not detect phthalates. I then looked at Vernier's SpectroVis Plus with SpectroVis Optical Fiber. The spectrophotometer is said to

easily determine the concentration of a solution or monitor rates of reaction"

I was wondering if this would be the tool to use.. I need to find something that is very convenient to use and can be done in our high school lab. Any respone would be great!
Thank You.
Harold Whitford Jr.

[deleted-71417]

Hi,

Here is a document describing the main commonly used methods of measuring phthalate esters in environmental samples:

http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp73-c6.pdf

The main method appears to be GC with an electron capture detector.

Here is a survey of a number of labs analyzing for phthalates in foods:

http://www.bezpecnostpotravin.cz/UserFi ... talaty.pdf

As far as I can tell quickly the main analysis techniques for phthalates are gc/ms, gc with FID and gc with FID detectors, I would try to find a way to use one of these.

Best regards,

Barrett L Tomlinson