Analysis of oilfield produced waters and production chemicals by electrospray ionisation multi-stage mass spectrometry (ESI-MSn).

Large quantities of diverse polar organic chemicals are routinely discharged from oil production platforms in so-called produced waters. The environmental fate of many of these is unknown since few methods exist for their characterisation. Preliminary investigations into the use of multistage electrospray ionisation ion trap mass spectrometry (ESI-MSn) show its potential for the identification and quantification of compounds in specialty oilfield chemicals (corrosion inhibitors, scale inhibitors, biocides and demulsifiers) and produced waters. Multiple stage mass spectrometry (MSn) with both positive and negative ion detection allows high specificity detection and characterisation of a wide range of polar and charged molecules. For example, linear alkylbenzenesulfonates (LAS), alkyldimethylbenzylammonium compounds, 2-alkyl-1-ethylamine-2-imidazolines, 2-alkyl-1-[N-ethylalkylamide]-2-imidazolines and a di-[alkyldimethylammonium-ethyl]ether were all identified and characterised in commercial formulations and/or North Sea oilfield produced waters. The technique should allow the marine environmental effects and fates of some of these polar compounds to be studied.

Assessing the biological potency of binary mixtures of environmental estrogens using vitellogenin induction in juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss).

Experiments were conducted to assess the in vivo potency of binary mixtures of estrogenic chemicals using plasma vitellogenin (VTG) concentrations in juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) as the endpoint. The estrogenic potencies of estradiol-17beta (E2), 4-tertnonylphenol (NP), and methoxychlor (MXC) were determined following 14 day exposures to the individual chemicals and binary mixtures of these chemicals. E2, NP, and MXC all induced concentration dependent increases in plasma VTG, with lowest observed effect concentrations of 4.7 and 7.9 ng L(-1) for E2, 6.1 and 6.4 microg L(-1) for NP, and 4.4 and 6.5 microg L(-1) for MXC. Concentration-response curves for fixed ratio binary mixtures of E2 and NP (1:1000), E2 and MXC (1:1000), and NP and MXC (1:1) were compared to those obtained for the individual chemicals, using the model of concentration addition. Mixtures of E2 and NP were additive at the concentrations tested, but mixtures of E2 and MXC were less than additive. This suggests that while NP probably acts via the same mechanism as E2 in inducing VTG synthesis, MXC may be acting via a different mechanism(s), possibly as a result of its conversion to HPTE which is an estrogen receptor alpha agonist and an estrogen receptor beta antagonist. It was not possible to determine whether mixtures of MXC and NP were additive using VTG induction, because the toxicity of MXC restricted the effect range forwhich the expected response curve forthe binary mixture could be calculated. The data presented illustrate that the model of concentration addition can accurately predict effects on VTG induction, where we know that both chemicals act via the same mechanism in mediating a vitellogenic response.

The determination of terbutaline in human plasma by selected ion monitoring of the t-butyldimethylsilyl ether.

A method is described for the quantitative determination of terbutaline in 2 ml human plasma. The drug is extracted from plasma as the terbutaline tetraphenylboron ion pair and determined by gas chromatography mass spectrometry of its t-butyldimethylsily ether. Salbutamol is used as internal standard. Quantification is achieved by selected ion monitoring of the ion m/z 482 derived from t-butyldimethylsilyl terbutaline and m/z 495 from t-butyldimethylsilyl salbutamol. The detection limit was estimated to be 250 pg terbutaline ml-1 plasma. The coefficient of variation at the level of 1 ng terbutaline ml-1 was 4.1% (n = 5).