摘要:In the course of a routine investigation concerned with polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination of dust collected in classrooms of a junior high school, a group of electron capture detector (ECD)-sensitive compounds with high boiling points were found in addition to PCBs. Using gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric techniques, these compounds were identified as polychlorinated terphenyls (PCTs). Additional measurements indicated that the PCTs were present only in particulate matter collected from the tops of fluorescent light frames but not in air samples obtained concomitantly in the classrooms. Attempts to identify the PCT emission source were unsuccessful. A survey of the literature revealed that PCTs are ubiquitously distributed environmental contaminants, although no data on their indoor occurrence have been reported to date. In view of the toxic effects of PCTs, which seem to be as important as those of PCBs, further attention should be given to the possible presence of PCTs in indoor environments. Full text Full text is available as a scanned copy of the original print version. Get a printable copy (PDF file) of the complete article (3.4M), or click on a page image below to browse page by page. Links to PubMed are also available for Selected References . 1172 1173 1174 1175 1176 1177 1178 1179