Detection of Toxic Compounds in Polyurethane Food Bags by Liquid Chromatography/Electrochemistry

Abstract

The application of liquid chromatography/electrochemistry (LCEC) for the determination of toxic by-products of boilable cooking pouches including, 2,6-toluenediamine (2,6-TDA), 2,4-toluenediamine (2,4-TDA), aniline and phenol, in aqueous solutions is demonstrated. Separation was achieved on a 5 μm ODS reverse-phase column with a mobile phase consisting of 7.0% acetonitrile and 93.0% 0.1 M ammonium acetate buffer, pH 5.40. Detection of compounds was accomplished using a thin layer amperemetric detector. Samples were directly injected without a pre-concentration or clean-up procedure. All of the potentially harmful compounds found to migrate out of the polyurethane walls of the boilable cooking pouches were routinely detectable at levels less than one picomole.