THE DETERMINATION OF BISPHENOL A IN THE DANUBE IN THE VICINITY OF NOVI- SAD, SERBIA.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is identified as the suspected endocrine disrupter (ED) and is on the NORMAN list of emerging substances and is also on the list of substances for further investigation reported by the US EPA and European Union. Although BPA arouses a considerable public health concern, there is a general lack of the information on the levels of EDs in the countries of the Western Balkan region. A gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric method was used for the quantification of BPA in the Danube surface water samples. A solid-phase extraction procedure with two types of cartridges (C18 and Bond Elut Plexa) was used for preconcentration and removal of interferences. Characteristic chromatogram was obtained in SIM mode (retention time 15.054 min). BPA was detected in water samples collected in November 2012 on eight different locations of the Danube in the vicinity of Novi Sad, Serbia. BPA ranged from < 6 ng/L to 221.6 ng/L. Future investigations should be focused on seasonal variations of the BPA concentrations and the higher number of collected samples and more sampling sites of the Danube water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]