Grant: Alliance Grants

Thousands of chemical substances and materials, representing millions of individual chemical compounds, have now been introduced to the Canadian market. Concerns that some of these chemicals can persist in the environment, bioaccumulate and adversely impact human health have led to international efforts to restrict the release of >30 groups of persistent organic pollutants (POPs). However, unregulated POPs may number in the thousands. Polymers and plastics have often been assumed to be of low concern, but there is growing evidence that decomposition during their lifecycle results in the release of complex mixtures of POPs. For example, polyvinylchloride can decompose at high temperatures into halogenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, some of which may well be as persistent, toxic, and bioaccumulative as 2,3,7,8-tetrachlordibenzo-p-dioxin, an infamous POP. PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) and PCTFE (polychlorotrifluoroethylene) used in non-stick coatings and smartphone displays can likewise form complex mixtures of POPs that are too difficult to separate using traditional analytical methods. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry is a powerful analytical technique used to identify unknown POPs based on their mass. Ion mobility is a related technology that can separate chemical compounds based on their mobility, which is related to a molecule's size and shape. Whereas the mass of a molecule can be used to deduce its consituent elements, the shape reflects its toxicity and environmental behaviour. Waters Corporation is a global leader in the design and manufacture of ion mobility-mass spectrometry technology; and Wellington Laboratories is a world leading supplier of analytical standards of POPs. This partnership aims to: (1) combine gas chromatography with a novel cyclic ion mobility mass spectrometry (GC×cIMS) to create the first instrument of its kind in North America; (2) develop reference materials and an analytical approach that enables the discovery of previously undocumented POPs resulting from the decomposition of plastics; (3) evaluate the toxic effects of these POPs using in vitro and metabolomics assays.