Effect of detergents in the release of bisphenol A from polycarbonate baby bottles

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a monomer crucial for the production of polycarbonate (PC). Recently, it has been verified that BPA is able to migrate from PC baby bottles into food simulants and numerous studies indicate that BPA may affect human health. In this work, five different detergents and bleach were tested to verify if they were able increasing the BPA release from the PC. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection (FLD) and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used to quantify and identify BPA. Of all detergents tested, only with one was not detected a BPA concentration higher than the control. in the worst case, BPA levels detected were about 500 times higher than the control and the concentration kept high even after rinsing the PC samples three times. In the case of bleach, while it was in contact with the PC, the BPA released was not detected. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.