RESULTS OF AN INITIAL SURVEY OF POLYCHLORINATED DIBENZO-P-DIODUS (PCDD) AND DIBENZOFURANS (PCDF) IN TEXTILES

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans were detected in a rticles of new cotton clothing at concentrations ranging from low pg/g to high ng/g (max. 300 ng/g Sigma PCDD/F; 370 pg I-TE/g). Several syn thetic textiles were analysed and all had low levels of less than 0.1 ng/g Sigma PCDD/F (< 1 pg I-TE/g) with the exception of an unbleached polyester cloth. The contamination found in cotton products was attrib uted in most cases to pentachlorophenol based on the similarity of the homolog profiles, the presence of fingerprint isomer ratios and analy sis of pentachlorophenol itself. In two instances the dioxins and fura ns were suspected to have originated from dyes derived from chloranil.