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Phthalate Esters as Environmental Contaminants

Nature volume 238, pages 411–413 (1972)Cite this article

Abstract

WE have found traces of phthalate esters in fish caught in various parts of North America. In a routine monitoring programme, gas-liquid chromatographic (GLC) analyses revealed two unidentified peaks in many fish extracts and in procedural blanks examined for insecticide residues. The two compounds have now been identified with gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer techniques1 as di-n-butyl and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalates. These compounds, widely used as plasticizers, proved to be of low toxicity, but our data suggest that they could be detrimental to some aquatic organisms.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fish-Pesticide Research Laboratory, Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife, US Department of the Interior, Columbia, Missouri, 65201

    FOSTER L. MAYER JUN., DAVID L. STALLING & JAMES L. JOHNSON

Authors
  1. FOSTER L. MAYER JUN.
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  2. DAVID L. STALLING
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  3. JAMES L. JOHNSON
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MAYER, F., STALLING, D. & JOHNSON, J. Phthalate Esters as Environmental Contaminants. Nature 238, 411–413 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1038/238411a0

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