A method for the separation and detection of standard resin acids (RAs), commonly found in pulp mill effluent and known to bioaccumulate in fish bile, was optimized using cyclodextrin modified electrokinetic capillary electrophoresis (CD-EKC) with ultra violet (UV) and laser induced fluorescence (LIF) detection. Optimal separation conditions were found with RA standards using UV detection at 214 nm, with a 72 mM sodium borate buffer pH 9.25, containing 35 mM beta-cyclodextrin sulfobutyl ether (SPCD), 15 mM of methyl-beta-cyclodextrin (MECD) and a 37 cm capillary with an internal diameter of 50pm. This resulted in a 12-min separation and the identification of 9 peaks, with a LOD of 10 ppm. To enable increased sensitivity, RAs were derivatized using the fluorescent label 4-BrMMc. A method for extracting resin acids from spiked fish bile and pulp mill effluent was developed, the extracted samples were derivatized, separated and identified using CD-EKC with LIF detection. The method of extraction and derivatization using CD-EKC was applied to biological samples of contaminated effluent and fish bile. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

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