Organotin compounds in the environment — an overview

Tin has a larger number of its organometallic derivatives in commercial use than any other element. This has given rise to an increase of the worldwide production of organotin compounds during the last 50 years. Due to the wide industrial applications considerable amounts of the organotins have entered various ecosystems. While Sn in its inorganic form is considered to be non-toxic, the toxicological pattern of the organotin compounds is complex. Depending on the nature and the number of the organic groups bound to the Sn cation, some organotins show specific toxic effects to different organsims even at very low concentrations. Therefore, specific determination of the individual organotin compounds is required. In recent years new sensitve analytical techniques have been developed for the detection of organotin compounds in various environmental samples. High amounts of the toxic tributyltin and some other organotin derivatives can be found not only in water and sediments, but also various aquatic organisms and tissues of mammals and birds are contaminated by these compounds. First investigations of human blood and livers show enhanced concentrations for some organotin derivatives. In spite of legislative regulations of usage for organotins in numerous countries, these pollutants represent a risk for aquatic and terrestric ecosystems.