Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2009DC102B

Speciation of Some Trioganotin Compounds in Anacostia and Potomac River Sediments using NMR Spectroscopy

Institute: District of Columbia
Year Established: 2009 Start Date: 2009-03-01 End Date: 2010-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $10,765 Total Non-Federal Funds: $30,540

Principal Investigators: Xueqing Song

Abstract: Tributyltins and triphenyltins were used in antifouling paints on ship hulls because of its strong biocidal effect, and triphenyltins can also be used as fungicides on a variety of crops. These applications are inevitably associated with triorganotin releases into the surrounding water, where it accumulates in suspended matter and in sediments. These compounds have been found to be toxic to other non-targeted marine organism, such as oysters and fish. This has led to the organotin act of 1988, and many countries have banned the use of these triorganotin compounds. Thus, triorganotin compounds can leach into waterways and become potential environment problems by being absorbed into sediments where they can interact with various aquatic species. Therefore, Knowledge about the persistency of TBTs and TPTs would be beneficial in the handling of contaminated dredged material, and it is essential to understand the speciation of these triorganotin compounds to gain a better understanding of their interaction in aquatic environment. The overall objective of this project is to investigate environment fate of the TBTs and TPTs that are leached from antifouling paints as well as those that reach surface waters as a result of agriculture run-offs and spray drifts. The compounds to be investigated will be those that are known to be used in marine paints and as agricultural fungicides. The triorganotin species will be spiked with the sediment from Potomac and Anacostia rivers in Washington DC metropolitan area and then extracted and analyzed with NMR spectrometer. Compared with other analytical methods, such as derivatization, presuurized liquid extraction, liquid chromatography inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy, and Mossbauer spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy offers an advantage in that it permits direct observation of the interaction between the triorganotins and the sediments. This project is also designed to involve undergraduate students at the University of the District of Columbia in research.