Methods for trace analysis of short-, medium-, and long-chain chlorinated paraffins: Critical review and recommendations.

Many methods for quantifying chlorinated paraffins (CPs) yield only a total concentration of the mixture as a single value. With appropriate analytical instrumentation and quantification methods, more reliable and detailed analysis can be performed by quantifying total concentrations of short-, medium-, and long-chain CPs (SCCPs, MCCPs, and LCCPs), and in the current optimal situation by quantifying individual carbon-chlorine congener groups (CCl). Sample extraction and clean-up methods for other persistent organochlorines that have been adapted for recovery of CPs must be applied prior to quantification with appropriate quality assurance and quality control to ensure applicability of the methods for SCCPs, MCCPs, and LCCPs. Part critical review, part tutorial, and part perspective, this paper provides practical guidance to analytical chemists who are interested in establishing a method for analysis of CPs in their lab facilities using commercial reference standards, or for expanding existing analysis of total CPs or SCCPs to analysis of SCCPs, MCCPs, and LCCPs, or to analysis of CCl congener groups.