Methyl tert‐butyl ether – Determination of methyl tert‐butyl ether in blood and urine using headspace gas chromatography mass spectrometry

Biomonitoring Method – Translation of the German version from 2018

Hans-Wolfgang Hoppe¹ (Method development)
Mareike Zarniko¹ (Method development)
Johannes Müller² (External verification)
  Thomas Göen² (External verification, Head of the working group “Analyses in Biological Materials” of the Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  Andrea Hartwig³ (Chair of the Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  MAK Commission<sup>4

1</sup> Medical Laboratory Bremen, Haferwende 12, 28357 Bremen, Germany
² Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social, and Environmental Medicine, Schillerstraße 25 and 29, 91054 Erlangen, Germany
³ Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Adenauerring 20a, Building 50.41, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany
⁴ Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Kennedyallee 40, 53175 Bonn, Germany

Abstract

The working group “Analyses in Biological Materials” of the Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area verified the present biomonitoring method.

The described analytical method allows the specific and sensitive determination of methyl tert‐butyl ether (MTBE) in blood and urine of persons occupationally exposed to this substance. The volatile MTBE is determined using static headspace GC‐MS. Before analysing an aliquot of the headspace, the urine and blood samples are diluted 1:10 with water, spiked with internal standard and incubated for 45 min at 60 °C. The isotope‐labelled d₃‐MTBE serves as internal standard. Aqueous standard solutions are used for calibration.

The method was extensively validated and the reliability data were confirmed by an independent laboratory, which has established and cross‐checked the whole procedure.

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