Characteristic and Extent of Chemical Contaminants in Recycled Paper Board

Analysis of the paperboard using thermal desorption has shown the presence of several organic compounds in the virgin and recycled paperboard samples. These compounds were identified by comparison with standard compounds in the library of the mass spectrometer software. A second set of paperboard samples received from the FDA Washington has also been analyzed by GC/MS. These samples were five boxes with Post breakfast cereal labeling. The final list of surrogates selected were naphthalene, 4,4'-bis(diethylamino)benzophenone, 2,4-dichlorophenol, dimethyl phthalate and methyl stearate. The average recovery found for these compounds is 84%.
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Currently, data collected from duplicate GC/MS qualitative and quantitative analyses of the recycled and virgin paperboard samples are being analyzed. The metal ions identified by voltammetry were cadmium, lead, copper and arsenic. Those identified by induction couple plasma are arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, iron, tin, and zinc. A total of eight recycled and one virgin paperboard samples were analyzed for metal ions. These represent materials from five different recycled manufacturers. An abstract of the results (both organic and inorganic) from this project was submitted to IFT for presentation at the 1999 IFT conference scheduled for June 1999. Manuscripts for publication in a referred trade journal are being prepared. Duplicate analyses for lead, cadmium and copper will be performed as soon as the voltammetry equipment is repaired. All other analyses have been completed except mercury. It was decided that the analysis for mercury will be cancelled because additional equipment is needed to accurate results.