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The Analysis of Organotins in Polyvinyl Chloride Pipe and Their Diffusion into Water Over Time
Citation:
ADAMS, W., C. IMPELLITTERI, G. E. RICE, A. Fristachi, Y. Xu, H. Carson-Lynch, AND J. C. Little. The Analysis of Organotins in Polyvinyl Chloride Pipe and Their Diffusion into Water Over Time. Presented at ACS Spring 2010 National Meeting & Exposition, San Francisco, CA, March 21 - 25, 2010.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public.
Description:
Organotins are commonly used as thermal stabilizers in the manufacturing of PVC pipes, which are widely used in drinking water distribution systems. Additives, such as organotins, have been show to leach through PVC pipe into water. While tri-substituted organotin compounds have shown high toxicity, the presence of any alkylated tin compound in a water system should be of concern. This research examines the presence of monomethyltin, dimethyltin, monobutyltin, and dibutyltin in a small-scale simulated PVC distribution system. The analysis of the organotins is conducted using water samples taken from the system, which are then extracted and derivatized using liquid-liquid extraction and ethylation derivatization. The samples are analyzed using GC/PFPD. The diffusion coefficient for the system is then calculated based on organotin concentrations and compared with predicted diffusion models for the leaching of organotin additives in PVC pipe over time.
