Analysis of organotin compounds in seawater using GC/pulsed flame photometric detection

A method for a highly sensitive determination of tributyltin(TBT) and triphenyltin(TPT) in seawater has been developed using GC/pulsed flame photometric detector(PFPD). After deuterated TBT and TPT, as surrogates compounds, were added in seawater, TBT and TPT were derivatized by Grignard reagent propylation. Then, derivatized TBT and TPT were extracted with hexane. PFPD showed high selective and sensitivity for the detection of propyl TBTand TPT. The minimum detection limits, defined as the signality equal to three-times the baseline noise, were 0.078 ng/ml and 0.087 ng/ml, respectively. The mean recoveries at 10 ng/l for water were 84 and 98% for TBT and TPT, respectively, and the mean relative standard deviations were 8.2 and 7.4%, respectively. PFPD made it possible to determine TBT and TPT at less than the ng l(-1) level in sea water.