Researchers at the University of Montreal are Developing New Methods to Monitor Pharmaceutical Compounds in Drinking Water

In response to growing concerns over the presence of residual pharmaceutical products in the city’s waste waters and drinking water, a collaboration has been established among the University of Montreal, the Drinking Water Research Chair at the Polytechnic School of Montreal, the City of Montreal and Environment Canada. This group works on the identification and quantification of the pharmaceuticals of most concern. The results of this ambitious study will be used to determine what upgrades might be necessary for the current drinking and waste water treatment systems of Montreal. To conduct this research, the University of Montreal has developed a new online sample preparation method using a customized Thermo Scientific EQuan™ system for solid phase extraction coupled to liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS/MS) technology. This implementation has resulted in significant cost savings and increased productivity.