Unité Matériaux et Transformations, Université de Lille, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France.
Maxei Group, Arras, France.
Waste Manag Res. 2023 Jan;41(1):182-194. doi: 10.1177/0734242X221105436. Epub 2022 Jul 23.
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were broadly applied worldwide as electrical insulators in transformers and power capacitors, due to their high dielectric constant and non-flammability. They were often added to mineral oils (MOs) and used as dielectric fluids, which are nowadays classified as hazardous waste. Indeed, the Stockholm Convention aims to eliminate the use of equipment with PCB content greater than 0.005 wt-% (=50 ppm) by 2025. Accurate identification and quantification of small traces of PCBs contained in MO thus represent a great analytical challenge. To achieve this goal, a simple, cost-effective and fast chromatographic process was developed to separate PCBs from MO, allowing to obtain reliable data to determine the concentration of PCBs, reduced to 2-3 ppm. Experimental and analytical methods, such as thin layer chromatography, column chromatography as well as gas chromatography coupled with mass spectroscopy, were applied to acquire a high level of qualitative and quantitative determination of PCBs in transformer MOs.
多氯联苯 (PCBs) 因其高介电常数和不易燃性而被广泛用作变压器和电力电容器中的电绝缘体，在世界各地得到广泛应用。它们通常添加到矿物油 (MO) 中用作电介质流体，而这些 MO 现在被归类为危险废物。事实上，《斯德哥尔摩公约》的目标是到 2025 年消除使用含有 PCB 含量超过 0.005 重量%（=50ppm）的设备。因此，准确识别和定量 MO 中含有的痕量 PCB 是一项极具分析挑战性的任务。为了实现这一目标，开发了一种简单、经济高效且快速的色谱过程，以将 PCB 从 MO 中分离出来，从而获得可靠的数据来确定 PCB 的浓度，降低至 2-3ppm。应用了实验和分析方法，如薄层色谱法、柱色谱法以及气相色谱法与质谱法相结合，以实现对变压器 MO 中 PCB 的高水平定性和定量测定。
