Passive Sampling of Organic Contaminants as a Novel Approach to Monitor Seawater Quality in Aquarium Ocean Tanks

The determination of trace pollutants in seawater is challenging, and sampling a crucial step the entire analytical process. Passive samplers combine situ preconcentration, thus limiting tedious treatment steps conventional methods. Their use to monitor water quality confined marine environment could bring several advantages. In this work, presence organic contaminants at ultra-trace levels was assessed Genoa Aquarium supply-and-treated using Polar Organic Integrative Samplers (POCIS). Both untargeted gas chromatography-mass spectrometry targeted liquid chromatography-tandem mass were employed. approach showed hydrocarbons, diphenyl sulfone 2,4-di-tert-butyl-phenol. Only hydrocarbons detected all samples. Nineteen emerging contaminants, belonging different classes (pharmaceuticals, UV-filters, hormones perfluorinated compounds), selected for target analysis. Thirteen analytes detected, mainly supply water, even though majority them below quantitation limit. It worthy note that two UV-filters had never been reported POCIS samplers. comparison treated indicated good performance system abatement contaminants.