Screening Method for the Determination of per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Textiles by Combustion and Ion Chromatography.

A screening method was developed for the determination of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in textiles by combustion and ion chromatography. In this work, a new type of high-temperature combustion absorption device was designed, and the samples were burned, cracked and gasified by temperature programmed heating mode. The produced free fluorine and hydrogen fluoride gases were absorbed by water vapor and completely transformed into inorganic fluoride anion. After condensation and collection, it was separated and determined by ion chromatography. The pre-treatment conditions were optimized including the sample weight, the combustion method, the combustion gas and its flow rate, the water evaporation rate and the condensate collection method. Method validation was performed in negative samples of cotton, wool and polyester, at spiked levels of 5, 50 and 200 mg/kg, respectively. The average recoveries were between 85.7 and 95.0% with relative standard deviations <20% (n = 7) indicating satisfactory accuracy and repeatability. The calibration curve was performed with the correlation coefficients (R2) higher than 0.999 within a linearity range of 0.01-2.0 mg/L. The limit of quantification was 5.0 mg/kg. The developed method was successfully used to determine the total fluorine in market samples. It can meet the screening determination of PFAS in various textiles.