Field demonstration of portable liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances detection along the Australian east coast.

This study presents the field demonstration of a portable liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) solution for rapid on-site detection of selected per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in soil and sand along Australia's east coast. Pallet-framed in a van, the compact LC-MS system integrates a Versiti chromatograph with a Shimadzu small-footprint autosampler and single quadrupole mass spectrometer. This mobile lab was evaluated over a 3000+ km round trip from Melbourne, Victoria, to Nudgee, Queensland, demonstrating the LC-MS system's portability and robustness under testing field conditions. On-site analyses were performed at three industrial locations, Ormeau (QLD), a former fire training ground near Budgewoi (NSW), and a landfill in the Central Coast Council region (NSW), along with analysis of a subset of shoreline samples from Nudgee Beach (QLD), Flynns Beach (NSW), Yarra Bay Beach (NSW), and Altona Beach (VIC). Method detection limits (MDLs) for 10 key PFAS in soil ranged from 1.9 to 7.5 μg/kg. Analysis of a proficiency test soil sample (AQA 22-13) showed an average of <23% deviation from reported and commercial lab values. Moreover, analysis of Budgewoi site samples revealed a substantial correlation between the portable LC-MS system and centralized LC-MS/MS for total PFAS concentrations (r = 0.923, p < 0.0001). Shoreline samples also showed strong agreement, with no false positives in over 40 samples. The palleted LC-MS platform ran on a petrol generator, deployed in 20 min, allowed remote troubleshooting, and delivered results for 24 soil samples, including on-site preparation, in 8 h. This study showed that portable LC-MS provides reliable screening for rapid decision-making and timely remediation, preserves centralized lab analysis for regulatory compliance, and transforms the cost-efficiency of field-based environmental monitoring.