Vials for 'Forever Chemicals' – Ensuring Compliance and Quality in PFAS Analysis with Polypropylene Sampling Vessels

What are PFAS? 

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large group of fluorinated aliphatic compounds that have attracted significant attention as persistent environmental pollutants. Often called "forever chemicals" due to their resistance to natural degradation, PFAS pose long-term risks to the environment and human health. They are highly mobile, and some forms are capable of bioaccumulating in humans and animals, raising concerns about their presence in water, food, and soil. Defined by their chemical structure, which contains at least one fully fluorinated methyl (CF3-) or methylene (-CF2-) group, PFAS have widespread applications across industries such as aerospace, automotive, textiles, electronics, and were previously used in firefighting as extinguishing agents. All of this has contributed to the widespread presence of these chemicals in nature, prompting the development of analytical control methods and regulations.

Our solution

Accurate detection and analysis of PFAS require specialized, contamination-free sampling vessels. Industry standards like ISO 21675:2019-10 specify the use of such polypropylene or polyethylene vials for determining PFAS in water via liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) following solid-phase extraction. Polypropylene containers are also required by EPA Method 537.1 for the determination of PFAS in drinking water. Ensuring that all sampling bottles, vials, and caps are PFAS-free is critical to maintaining data integrity, and polypropylene or polyethylene containers fulfil this requirement.

Together with polypropylene (PP) vials, IVA’s PFAS-free caps and closures offer a reliable solution for accurate PFAS analysis. Our caps are compatible with standard screw, crimp, or snap vials and are recommended for analyzing PFAS in drinking water, food packaging, and commercial household products. By using these caps, laboratories can achieve high-precision analytics while adhering to global regulatory standards.

Given the rising concern over PFAS in the environment, the demand for sampling and analysing is expected to increase in the coming years, particularly for drinking water. The European Directive 2020/2184, from December 2020, established two separate limit values for PFAS levels in water intended for human consumption: ‘PFAS Total’ 0.50 μg/L and ‘Sum of PFAS’ 0.10 μg/L. This has led to the creation of a new technical guideline (2024), which outlines different methods for analyzing these two parameters, contributing to the enhanced monitoring of PFAS in drinking water.

As this legislative focus in the EU grows, so will the need for proper norm-conforming vials, making high-quality polypropylene sampling bottles indispensable in some routine analytical laboratories. Prepare for the future of PFAS analytics by exploring our range of compliant sampling bottles, designed specifically for the accurate detection of the "forever chemicals".

IVA offers a wide range of polypropylene (PP) vials, including short thread vials (1.5 mL) with ND9 polypropylene caps and snap ring microvials (0.3 and 0.7 mL) with polyethylene snap ring caps. If you're impacted by the new PFAS analysis regulations, ensure compliance by ordering our sample vials. Available as 2-in-1 Kits (Figure 1), these products are designed to safeguard your analytical results. Test samples are also available.

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