USE OF CARTRIDGES FOR SPECIATION OF ORGANOTIN COMPOUNDS IN ENVIRONMENTAL-SAMPLES

The performance of cartridges with different polar and non-polar stati onary phases (C-18, C-8, C-2, phenyl) has been investigated for the qu antitative separation of butyltin and phenyltin species (TBT, DBT, MBT , MPT, DPT, TPT), and conditions have been established to optimize the separation, using gas chromatography with a flame photometric detecto r, to characterize the different organotin species. Optimum separation and preconcentration of organotins is based on retention in a C-18 ca rtridge and elution with 2 cm(3) of 1% (v/v) HBr and 0.1% tropolone so lution in methanol, being successfully applied to seawater. Finally, t he possibilities of the cartridges for selective elution and their use in direct non-chromatographic speciation are discussed.