Chlorinated Bis (propyl) ethers and Chlorinated Bis (ethyl) formals in the German Bight of the North Sea

摘要

Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric (GC/MS) analysis of water samples from the Elbe river revealed the occurrence of chlorinated bis(propyl)ethers (Cl_xBPE, x = 2-4, Fig. 1, compounds 1-7) which contribute significantly to the contamination of the Elbe river caused by lipophilic chloro-organics (Franke et al., 1995a). At its mouth where mixing with North Sea water takes place, the concentrations of tetra-chloro-bis(propyl)ethers (Cl_4BPE) were in the upper ng l~(-1)-range. Consequently, chlorinated bis(propyl)-ethers were expected to be present in North Sea water due to the significant emissions of the Elbe River (Franke et al., 1995a). In order to gain information on the input of chloropropylethers, sampling locations were selected covering the plume of the Elbe River in the German Bight (Fig. 2). Furthermore, samples from the western and south-western border of the inner German Bight were chosen to examine the influence of the diluted Rhine River plume. In addition to the propylene-based chloroethers, a series of (2-chloroethyl)formals (Fig. 1, compounds 8-10) also originating from the Elbe River (Franke et ai, 1995b) were detected in the German Bight.