Back in August of this year, Organomation exhibited at the Environmental Measurement Symposium (EMS 2023). This event had a large focus on PFAS - toxic "forever chemicals" that are becoming increasingly rampant in all aspects of our environment. Many of our environmental focused customers, some of whom we were able to reconnect with at the show, utilize our parallel concentrators to quickly dry down PFAS samples prior to analysis.
EPA methods 533 and 537.1 are the most predominant testing methods for determining these per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in drinking water, applying both solid phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). As PFAS regulations increase in certain locations, many state regulated and UCMR-5 approved labs have begun transitioning from EPA 537.1 to EPA 533 to pick up additional analytes that may have previously been getting missed.
No matter what methodology your lab is using, having the proper instrumentation is crucial for yeilding reliable results.
One of the vendors we were able to connect with at EMS was PromoChrom Technologies, a prominent manufacturer of solid phase extraction equipment. Their automated SPE-03 system has become the top choice for efficiently extracting drinking water samples for labs following these popularized EPA methods.
Many users of the SPE-03 system also utilize our N-EVAP nitrogen dryer in tandem - a foolproof duo leaving behind highly concentrated PFAS samples ready for LC-MS. Laboratories such as Aqua America in Pennsylvania and Santa Clarita Water Agency in California have been able to speed up their sample preparation process by incorporating both instruments into their workflow.
Jeff Koelewyn, Laboratory Manager at Santa Clarita expressed that the "N-EVAP is awesome, it is great at what it does." As someone who's been in the laboratory industry for over 40 years and is an expert in the field of PFAS analysis, this is no small compliment.
Learn how Organomation's Teflon-free sample concentrator can assist in your EPA 537.1 and 533 PFAS testing. To discuss your lab's specific sample prep needs, reach out to our team using the contact us form or by calling 978-838-7300.