The Malaysian Journal of Analytical Sciences Vol 12 No 1 (2008): 46 -52

 

 

APPLICATION OF SOLID PHASE MICROEXTRACTION (SPME) IN PROFILING HYDROCARBONS IN OIL SPILL CASES

 

Zuraidah Abdullah Munir,  Nor’ashikin Saim, Nurul Huda Mamat Ghani

 

Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA

40450 UiTM Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.

 

Abstract

In environmental forensic, it is extremely important to have a fast and reliable method in identifying sources of spilled oil and petroleum products.   In this study, solid phase microextraction (SPME)  method coupled to  gas chromatography-mass spectrometry  was  developed  for  the  analysis  of  hydrocarbons  in  diesel  and  petroleum  contaminated  soil  samples. Optimization of SPME parameters such as extraction time, extraction temperature and desorption time, was performed using 100-µm polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) fiber.  These parameters were studied at three levels by means of a central composite experimental  design  and  the  optimum  experimental  conditions  were  determined  using  response  surface  method.    The developed SPME method was applied to determine the profiles of hydrocarbons in several oil contaminated soil sample.  The SPME method was also used to study the effects of weathering on the profiles of hydrocarbons in unleaded gasoline, diesel and kerosene contaminated soil samples.  After several days, significant losses of the lighter hydrocarbons were observed compared to the heavier ones.  From these data, SPME method can be used to differentiate possible candidate sources in oil spill cases.

 

Keywords: Profile of hydrocarbon, solid phase microextraction (SPME), oil spill

 

References

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