Development and validation of an analytical method for detection of estrogens in water

An analytical procedure enabling routine analysis of four environmental estrogens at concentrations below 1 ng L−1 in estuarine water samples has been developed and validated. The method includes extraction of water samples using solid-phase extraction discs and detection by gas chromatography (GC) with tandem mass spectrometry (MS–MS) in electron-impact (EI) mode. The targeted estrogens included 17α- and 17β-estradiol (aE2, bE2), estrone (E1), and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), all known environmental endocrine disruptors. Method performance characteristics, for example trueness, recovery, calibration, precision, accuracy, limit of quantification (LOQ), and the stability of the compounds are presented for each of the selected estrogens. Application of the procedure to water samples from the Scheldt estuary (Belgium – The Netherlands), a polluted estuary with reported incidences of environmental endocrine disruption, revealed that E1 was detected most frequently at concentrations up to 7 ng L−1. aE2 was detected once only and concentrations of bE2 and EE2 were below the LOQ.