The Analysis of Organic Water Pollutants by Gas Chromatography and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

Information on the identities and quantities of specific organic compounds in polluted water is essential for locating and verifying pollutant sources, for assessing toxieity and hazard, and for designing effective control procedures. Such information can be obtained through either of two analytical approaches. In the first, a single compound or class of compounds is measured with a technique which is specific for only that compound or class and for no others; the measurement of phenols by the 4-aminoantipyrine colorimetric method is a classic example. This first approach is the traditional one and as such it has been amply reviewed elsewhere [1–3], and there is a book on the subject [4].