J. Koistinen et al., CHLORINATED FLUORENES AND ALKYLFLUORENES IN BLEACHED KRAFT PULP AND PULP-MILL DISCHARGES, Chemosphere, 28(12), 1994, pp. 2139-2150
The occurrence and levels of polychlorinated fluorenes (PCFLs), methyl
fluorenes (C1-PCFLs) and dimethylfluorenes (C2-PCFLs) were studied by
high resolution gas chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometry (
HRGC/HRMS) in hardwood and softwood pulp, effluent and biosludge from
a bleached kraft mill. Semiquantitative concentrations of these compou
nds were estimated using selected ion monitoring and a mass spectral r
esolution of 10,000. The identification of PCFLs and C1-PCFLs was conf
irmed by the chlorination mixtures of fluorene and 2-methylfluorene. S
everal congeners were found for each compound groups studied and isome
r patterns were similar in bleached pulp and biosludge. The approximat
ed sum levels of di- and trichloro isomers of PCFLs, C1-PCFLs and C2-P
CFLs in the biosludge were about 2, 5 and 4 ng/g dry weight (dw), resp
ectively. The levels of the corresponding compounds in the softwood pu
lp were 0.5, 0.8 and 0.2 ng/g dw, respectively. Of the studied compoun
ds, only C1-diCFLs (0.01 ng/g dw) were detected in the hardwood pulp.
In the effluent, PCFLs were non-detectable, but traces of C1-diCFLs (0
.5 ng/L) and C2-pentaCFLs (0.06 ng/L) were found. These were observed
mainly as dissolved in the filtrate and not as particle-bound.