IDENTIFICATION OF VOLATILE ORGANICS IN WARSAW TAP WATER

Identification of volatile organics in Warsaw tap water using gas chro matography combined with mass spectrometry is described. About 100 com pounds (including alkanes, arenes, halogenated hydrocarbons, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, furan and its derivatives, and nitrogen compounds ) have been identified. The presence of the following halocompounds wh ich are not listed by the EPA has been established: cyanogen chloride, cyanogen bromide, chloroacetylene, bromoacetylene, CHCl2I, CHClBrI, C HBr2I, and CHBrI2. Water from Vistula was found to be polluted by hydr ocarbons, halogenated hydrocarbons, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, and sulphur compounds. To isolate volatile organics from 2 liter water sam ples, a two step enrichment method, followed by freezing in a trap coo led with liquid nitrogen, has been used.