Rapid Analysis of Trace Phthalates by Spray-Inlet Microwave Plasma Torch Ionization Tandem Mass Spectrometry in Commercial Perfumes.

Background: The less volatile fraction of perfumes is susceptible to contamination by phthalate esters (PAEs), which are endocrine-disrupting chemicals encountered during the production, bottling, and transportation processes. There is a need to establish an innovative and rapid method for the determination of trace PAEs in commercial perfumes.

Objective: Therefore, self-built spray-inlet microwave plasma torch (MPT) ionization coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) tandem MS (MS/MS) was developed for the direct analysis of PAEs in perfumes without sample pretreatment.

Methods: Perfumes were sprayed directly onto the flame of the MPT by means of a sampling pump at a rate of 10 µL/min and the ions produced by the MPT were introduced into the QTOF-MS equipment with the MPT operating at 2450 MHz and 40 W at a flow rate of 800 ml/min of argon.

Results: For the established method, excellent linearity was obtained with a correlation coefficient of 0.9799 for di-n-pentyl phthalate and of greater than 0.99 for the other substances tested. The LOD and LOQ obtained were in the ranges of 1.452-18.96 and 4.839-63.19 ng/g, respectively. The spiked recoveries of PAEs ranged from 100.1 to 105.2% with satisfactory intraday RSDs and interday RSDs ranging from 1.51 to 4.34% and 3.45 to 5.65%, respectively. PAEs in commercial perfumes were successfully detected by spray-inlet MPT-MS/MS with low concentrations ranging from 0.036 to 1.352 µg/g.

Conclusions: The method is a promising tool for the on-site analysis of PAEs in cosmetic solutions requiring rapid qualitative and quantitative analysis.

Highlights: The method was successfully applied to the analysis of the commercial perfume samples within 30 s, and displayed the merits of simplicity, sensitivity, environmental friendliness and ease of operation.