Nitrosamine occurrence at Korean surface water using an analytical method based on GC/LRMS

The survey of nitrosamine occurrence at Korean surface water of Nakdong river is conducted in this study. For this purpose, the nitrosamine analytical method based on more affordable GC/LRMS (low resolution mass spectrometry) has been developed. According to the study results, six nitrosamine compounds (NDEA as N-nitrosomethylethylamine, NDPA as N-nitrosodi-n-propylamine, NDMA as N-nitrosodimethylamine, NMEA as N-nitrosomethylethylamine, NDBA as N-nitrosodi-n-butylamine, and NDPHA as N-nitrosodiphenylamine) were detected at the Nakdong river. Among these, NDEA and NDPA are the most important compounds in terms of the nitrosamine contamination of the Nakdong river. The detected concentration of NDEA exceeded the CDHCS (California Department of Health Care Services) response level of 100 ng/L at several sites. The detected concentration of NDPA approached the response level (500 ng/L) at a few sites. When all nitrosamine concentrations were summed up, the maximum concentration of 735.7 ng/L was detected at the Nakdong river. An equation describing a decrease in total nitrosamine concentration along downstream sampling sites was proposed in this study. The equation can be used to predict the downstream nitrosamine contamination at the Nakdong river. Among various water quality parameters, T-N showed a good correlation with total nitrosamine concentration.