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(46-14) Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in sediments from the river Danube. Sawal, G.*,1, Herz, A.1, Woitke, P.1, Lepom, P.1, 1 Federal Environmental Agency, Berlin, Germany ABSTRACT- Within the framework of the Joint Danube Survey, organised by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River, sediment samples for analysis of PBDEs were collected along the Danube River including its main tributaries from Regensburg (Germany) to its estuary at the Black Sea at 33 sites in Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova and Ukraine representing nearly the whole river course. Samples were freeze-dried and passed through a 2 mm sieve prior analysis. BDE congeners 28, 47, 66, 85, 99, 100, 138, 153, 154, 183 and 209 were measured after extraction with n-hexane/acetone and clean-up using gel permeation chromatography and multi-layer column chromatography (silica gel, alkaline- and acid-impregnated silica gel). Separation and detection was done by capillary gas chromatography-electron capture negative ionisation mass spectrometry (GC-ECNI-MS) in the selected ion monitoring mode. For congeners with three to seven bromine atoms the most prominent ions at m/z = 79 and m/z = 81 were recorded while for the decabromodiphenyl ether BDE-209 the highly specific ions at m/z = 484,7 and m /z= 486,7 were used for quantification. Results on peak pattern, sediment concentrations as well as a comparison with data on PBDE concentrations in sediments from Western European river systems will be presented. Results will be interpreted with respect to potential point sources of PBDEs along the Danube river system. To our knowledge this is the first study on the occurrence of PBDEs in freshwater sediments from Eastern Europe. Key words: brominated flame retardants, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, sediment, analysis |
