Journal of Chromatography & Separation Techniques
Open Access

Determination of drugs of abuse and related compounds in sewage water by liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry

2^nd International Conference on Current Trends in Mass Spectrometry

July 20-22, 2016 Chicago, USA

Pim de Voogt

University of Amsterdam and KWR Watercycle Research Institute, The Netherlands

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Chromatogr Sep Tech

Abstract :

Wastewater-based epidemiology is a new field of research in which analysis of concentrations of biomarkers of drugs in domestic wastewaters is used to back calculate human consumption of the drugs. Liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry has been successfully used to estimate and compare consumption of illicit drugs and counterfeit medicines in European city populations. Apart from target screening of classical drugs like cocaine and amphetamine the presence of new psychoactive substances (NPS, designer drugs) can be screened in wastewater, e.g., during festivals and other big events, using high resolution MS. For this purpose, a qualitative screening method based on liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-offlight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF MS) was applied for the detection and identification of stimulant-type NPS in wastewater. Eight 24-h composite influent wastewater samples were collected at the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) serving the catchment area of Amsterdam in 2012 and 2014, during two events that each brought 300,000 visitors to the city.

Biography :

Email: w.p.devoogt@uva.nl