Determination of 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol and 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol in papers treated with polyamidoamine-epichlorohydrin wet-strength resins by gas chromatography mass spectrometry using selective ion monitoring

Polyamidoamine-epichlorohydrin wet-strength resins for paper contain small amounts of 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol and 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol formed by side reactions from epichlorohydrin used in the production process. Normally some residues of these substances are transferred to the wet-strength treated paper. An analytical method has therefore been developed for the simultaneous determination of 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol and 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol in paper in the 0.05-2 mg/kg range. The compounds are simultaneously extracted and silylated with a solution of N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide in acetonitrile and finally determined by capillary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry in the selective ion monitoring mode against an internal standard. The detection limits are 0.04 mg/kg for both 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol and 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.