Method development for trace analysis of heteroaromatic compounds in contaminated groundwater.

An analytical method providing high sensitivity (limit of quantitation of 50 ng/l) with acceptable reproducibility (mean R.S.D. 19%) has been developed for determining heteroaromatic compounds in creosote-contaminated groundwater. The best technique (highest recovery and reproducibility) found between liquid-liquid extraction using either dichloromethane, diethyl ether or pentane and solid-phase extraction with reversed-phase bonded columns, was the classical liquid extraction with dichloromethane from weak basic solutions and GC-MS (selective ion monitoring) analysis of concentrated extracts.