Ask the Expert Webinar series

Measurement of Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products in Complex Matrices

About this webinar:

Pharmaceuticals, Personal Care Products, Steroids and Hormones, commonly called PPCP, are bioactive compounds classified by the EPA as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs.)  PPCPs include a diverse collection of thousands of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, cosmetics and personal hygiene products, and many are considered endocrine disrupters.

EPA studies have discovered PPCPs in our nation's waters and subsequent research suggests that certain drugs may cause ecological harm.   Disposal and excretion account for most of the non-point source PPCP contamination in our environment and those paths include discharge from wastewater treatment plants and runoff from confined animal feed operations and landfills.

TestAmerica's efforts in this emerging market go beyond the routine analysis of water by developing method capabilities to detect PPCPs in more complex matrices including waste water and sediments.  Unlike typical water analyses, wastewater and sediments matrices contain high levels of organic materials and suspended solids, and require a more rigorous extraction process to identify and measures trace level PPCPs.

EPA method 1694 (HPLC/MS/MS) is a performance based method for the analysis of PPCPs.  The method allows laboratories to adapt and enhance the procedures while maintaining the required quality assurance.  TestAmerica's method development produced the needed modification to overcome complex matrices and achieve parts per trillion PPCP detection levels in wastewater and sediment samples.

Topics the presentation will cover:

• An introduction to PPCPs
• Non-point sources
• Programs requesting PPCPs
• Analytical challenges of PPCPs
• Applying method 1694 to complex matrices

Who should attend?

• Water industry Consultants
• Wastewater Treatment Operators
• Landfill Operators
• Site Owners
• Regulatory Officials

A question and answer session will immediately follow the presentation. At the conclusion of each webinar, you will be asked for your feedback and opinions for future webinar topic to be developed by TestAmerica.