Comprehensive Determination of 28 PFAS Compounds in Oyster Tissue: A QuEChERS Sample Preparation Coupled with UPLC-MS/MS

Abstract

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are known to bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms, such as shellfish, and have been linked to adverse human health outcomes. Increasing attention has been focused on method development for the detection of PFAS in various media; however, these methods are typically tedious, require high solvent volumes, and are time consuming. The present method used a Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe (QuEChERS) extraction approach and analysis by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) to detect 28 PFAS in Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) tissue. This method was validated using limit of detection, limit of quantitation, and precision and accuracy studies. Limits of detection ranged from 0.2 to 5.8 ng g−1, limits of quantitation ranged from 0.66 to 19.2 ng g−1, and recoveries spanned 52.1–105.9% at the 100 ng mL−1 analyte level. Analysis of 12 unknown oyster composite samples revealed the detection of PFHxA, PFPeS, PFOA, PFHpA and PFOS and at least two compounds were detected in each oyster sample. This validated method proved to be an efficient and environmentally friendly sample preparation method for PFAS analysis in complex tissue media, such as oysters.