Octanol/water partition coefficients of phthalate esters: A comparison of measured, estimated, and computed values
- Environmental Protection Agency, Athens, GA (United States)
Reliable octanol/water partition coefficients (K{sub ow}) of nine dialkyl phthalate esters are needed in an ongoing benthic organisms toxicity testing program. The equilibrium distribution of an organic chemical between water and octanol (K{sub ow}) is a physical constant that can be used to calculate both bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) and equilibrium constants for sediment-organic carbon partitioning (K{sub oc}). The log K{sub ow}s reported in the literature for a single chemical often span several orders of magnitude. For example, the reported log K{sub ow}s of bis(2-ethylehxyl) phthalate range from a low of 5.11 to a high of 9.61. The log K{sub ow}s of the dialkyl phthalate esters in this study were expected to range from < 2 (dimethyl) to > 8 (didecyl). The slow-stir method as described by de Bruijn has been shown to avoid emulsion formation and allow measure of K{sub ow}s of chemicals with log K{sub ow} > 6. In addition to measurement by the slow-stir method the K{sub ow}s were also determined by a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) estimation method and calculated by a computer based program that was designed to calculate physical/chemical properties (SPARC). The greatest difference between the slow-stir and SPARC K{sub ow} values was 0.19 with the other differences less than 0.1 log units. All the HPLC estimated values were at least 0.7 log units lower than the slow-stir value. For example, the log K{sub ow}s determined for dibutly phthalate by the slow-stir, SPARC, and HPLC methods were 4.50 {+-} 0.03, 4.61, and 4.00, respectively.
- OSTI ID:
- 460504
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-961149--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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