NF EN ISO 18218-1, G52-236-1 (06/2023)

This document specifies a method for the determination of alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEO) [nonylphenol ethoxylate (NPEOn, where 2 = n = 16) and octylphenol ethoxylate (OPEOn, where 2 = n = 16)] in leather. This direct analysis method is particularly suitable when ethoxylated alkylphenols must be determined on a large number of leather samples. The analysis is carried out by liquid chromatography (LC) coupled with tandem mass spectrometry with a triple quadrupole analyzer (MS/MS), in order to identify and quantify ethoxylated alkylphenols. NOTE 1 Among the ethoxylated alkylphenols, the one most used in the leather industry is NPEO, which contains on average 9 ethoxy groups. The water clouding temperature of this substance is optimal considering the temperatures typically used for leather processing, which are between 40°C and 55°C. NOTE 2 This document and ISO 18218-2 use different solvents for the extraction of ethoxylated alkylphenols from leather. Therefore, it can be expected that the results obtained by following one of the two analytical methods will be comparable to those obtained by following the second method, but not necessarily identical, with regard to the content of ethoxylated alkylphenols in the leather.
(Automatic translation from French)