Loyola University Chicago, Chemistry, Chicago, IL 60626
The purpose of this research is to analyze wastewater in order to determine the amount of human-excreted drug metabolites. The practical use is to effectively determine the usage and amount of illicit and illegal drug use in area communities, as opposed to current methods such as crime rates and surveys. Solid phase extraction is applied to wastewater samples obtained, to which deuterated forms of metabolites are added. After eluting the drug metabolites from the MCX cartridge, they are concentrated using a stream of nitrogen and dissolved in 200 microliters of water. These samples are then subjected to liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, which verifies the identity of each drug metabolite; each of which is compared to the standardized-deuterated molecules. The concentration ratio of each determines the proportion of drug use in the population represented by each sample of wastewater. This ratio is more accurate than modern methods in determining drug usage.
[Abstract (DOC)]