Determination of the strong mutagen 3-chloro-4-(dichloromethyl)-5-hydroxy-2(5H)-furanone (MX) and its analogues by GC-ITD-MS-MS

A new analytical method has been developed for the determination of chlorin ated and brominated hydroxyfuranones. The method is based on separation by GC and selective determination of the compounds by use of an ion-trap mass detector. MS-MS fragmentation in an ion-trap detector can be regarded as an alternative to high-resolution mass spectrometry. Unique precursor ions we re selected from the El mass spectra and product-ion patterns were studied for a variety of collision energies. From these data, abundant mass transit ions were selected for quantification and confirmation of compound identity . The method was applied to a spiked sample of chlorine-disinfected drinkin g water and it was found that the GCMS-MS procedure is at least as sensitiv e and selective as previously published methods.