The use of alternative fluids in on-line supercritical fluid extraction – capillary gas chromatography

A key feature differentiating analytical supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) from conventional liquid extraction is the possibility of varying the solvent strength of a supercritical fluid to achieve selective extractions of specific target compounds, or functional classes of compound, from complex matrices. This can be accomplished by using supercritical fluids other than carbon dioxide, for example, sulfur hexafluoride, nitrous oxide, or sulfur hexafluoride-modified carbon dioxide. The use of these fluids will be demonstrated by the characterization of complex environmental and petroleum matrices by directly coupled SFE – capillary GC. On-line SFE-GC involves the decompression of pressurized extraction fluid directly into the heated, unmodified capillary split injection port of the chromatograph. This paper will also show how, by adjustment of the extraction temperature and pressure, SFE selectivity may be further enhanced.     

Applications of On-Line SFE/SFC in Environmental Analysis

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorinated Pesticides (OCPs) on different absorbents were extracted and analyzed by a directly coupled supercritical fluid extraction and supercritical fluid chromatography system (on-line SFE/SFC). The influence of various absorbents as sample matrixes on extraction efficiencies was evaluated. In general, the extraction efficiencies were decreased if a matrix had a larger surface area and a smaller pore size. The recoveries of PAHs and PCBs were decreased in inverse proportion to their molar mass. Recoveries of OCPs containing epoxy functional groups were greater than for OCPs lacking this functional group. In conclusion, online SFE/SFC is a rapid (1-2 h) and high recovery (70%-100%) analytical technique.     

Qualitative supercritical fluid extraction coupled to capillary gas chromatography

The usefulness and ease of utilizing supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) directly coupled to capillary gas chromatography (GC) as quantitative or qualitative analytical problem-solving tools will be demonstrated. As an alternative to conventional liquid solvent extractions, SFE presents itself as a means to achieve high extraction efficiencies of different compounds in complex solid matrices in very rapid tims frames. Moreover, SFE has an additional advantage of being able to achieve distinct extraction selectivities as a function of the solubilizing power of the supercritical fluid extracting phase. For on-line SFE/GC, the extraction effluent is directly transferred to the analytical chromatograph. On-line SFE/GC involves the decompression of pressurized extraction effluent directly into a heated, unmodified capillary split injection port of the GC. In this respect, SFE introduction into GC can be used as an alternative means of GC injection, comparable to such modes of injection as pyrolysis and thermal desorption. This paper will show applications of SFE/GC where mass spectrometric detection together with flame ionization detection was used for component identification from environmental, tobacco, and petroleum matrices.     

Characterization of Mechanisms of Pesticide Retention in Soils Using the Supercritical Fluid Extraction Technique

Abstract

This research determined the relative effectiveness of supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) in extracting atrazine and its metabolites from soils which had been treated with atrazine for varying periods of time in order to characterize binding mechanisms. Aqueous methanol extraction was more effective than SFE in removing ¹⁴C atrazine residues from “aged” soils. The more polar the solvent system, the more ¹⁴C-atrazine residues were extracted. The order of polarity and extractability was aqueous methanol > SF-CO₂/5% methanol > SF-CO². Atrazine extraction efficiency using SF-CO₂, and SF-CO₂/.5% methanol decreased as samples “aged” in the field. The less than complete recovery of atrazine residues using the SFE technique could be seen as an indication that different binding mechanisms were involved in the retention of atrazine as well as its metabolites and that the binding mechanisms changed with time.     

Extraction of nitrofurantoin and its toxic metabolite from urine by supercritical fluids. Quantitation by high performance liquid chromatography with UV detection

A procedure is described for the determination of nitrofurantoin and its toxic metabolite in urine from patients with urinary infection using supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and liquid chromatography. The standard solution of toxic metabolite (radical anion) was obtained by electrochemical reduction of nitrofurantoin in an aprotic medium and chemical reoxidation with oxygen. In our initial SFE studies to find the adequate extraction parameters, drug solutions were impregnated onto filter paper. Quantitative extractions were achieved when the experiments were carried out under 2500 psi of pressure at a temperature of 80 °C (oven and restrictor) after 20 min of static extraction and 5 min of dynamic extraction. The modifier used was acetonitrile (2.0 ml in a 10 ml extraction column). Nitrofurantoin and its toxic metabolite were detected in urine samples. Both compounds were quantified in the extracts by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with detection at 310 nm. The calibration graph of these compounds in acetonitrile was linear between 10.9 and 378.0 μM (R=0.9995) for nitrofurantoin and between 3.0×10⁻³ and 21.0 μM (R=0.9992) for the metabolite. The detection limits (LOD) were 12.1 and 0.9 μM, respectively. The drug was administered to two patients during 7 days, and all the urine eliminated between 1 day before and 2 days after administration was analyzed. One patient consumed the drug in the form of microcrystals and the other as macrocrystals.     

Selective extraction of astaxanthin from crustaceans by use of supercritical carbon dioxide

An on-line supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) system coupled to a continuous flow manifold including a UV detector was used as a screening system to extract astaxanthin from crayfish, which was found to be the major carotenoid present in the samples. This compound constitutes the principal additive used to dye salmon flesh. The flow manifold was used to confirm the presence of astaxanthin in the crustacean samples. Also, an HPLC/UV-vis method was used to ascertain that this compound was the major carotenoid extracted under the optimum SFE conditions employed. The influence of SFE operating variables such as pressure, temperature, equilibration time, extraction time, trap temperature, and volume of CO₂ modifier was examined in order to maximize the efficiency of analyte extraction. The use of supercritical CO₂ enables the expeditious, selective, quantitative extraction of astaxanthin from crustaceans.     

Supercritical fluid extraction of phenol compounds from olive leaves

A clean, highly selective supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) method for the isolation of phenols from olive leaf samples was examined. Total phenol extracts were determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent. Dried, ground, sieved olive leaf samples (30 mg) are subjected to SFE, using carbon dioxide modified with 10% methanol at 334 bar, 100 degrees C (CO(2) density 0.70 g ml(-1)) at a liquid flow-rate of 2 ml min(-1) for 140 min. Diatomaceous earth is used to reduce the void volume of the extraction vessel. The influence of extraction variables such as modifier content, pressure, temperature, flow-rate, extraction time, and collection/elution variables, were studied. Supercritical fluid extracts were screened for acid compounds such as carboxylic acids and phenols using Electrospray-MS (in the negative ionization mode). SFE was found to produce higher phenol recoveries than sonication in liquid solvents such as n-hexane, diethyl ether and ethyl acetate. However, the extraction yield obtained was only 45%, using liquid methanol.     

Supercritical fluid extraction in plant essential and volatile oil analysis

The use of supercritical fluids, especially carbon dioxide, in the extraction of plant volatile components has increased during two last decades due to the expected advantages of the supercritical extraction process. Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) is a rapid, selective and convenient method for sample preparation prior to the analysis of compounds in the volatile product of plant matrices. Also, SFE is a simple, inexpensive, fast, effective and virtually solvent-free sample pretreatment technique. This review provides a detailed and updated discussion of the developments, modes and applications of SFE in the isolation of essential oils from plant matrices. SFE is usually performed with pure or modified carbon dioxide, which facilitates off-line collection of extracts and on-line coupling with other analytical methods such as gas, liquid and supercritical fluid chromatography. In this review, we showed that a number of factors influence extraction yields, these being solubility of the solute in the fluid, diffusion through the matrix and collection process. Finally, SFE has been compared with conventional extraction methods in terms of selectivity, rapidity, cleanliness and possibility of manipulating the composition of the extract.     

Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Organochlorine Pesticides from Soil

Abstract

A supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) method was developed for the extraction of 21 organochlorine (OC) pesticides from soil using dichloromethane as cosolvent and magnesium sulfate as drying agent. Average recoveries of spiked OCs from six different soils generally ranged from 70 to 95%, with an average replicate precision of ± 13%. For the extraction of two soils containing “native” OCs, the SFE method gave generally similar or higher concentrations compared to Soxhlet extraction. The precision of replicate analyses of native OCs using SFE and Soxhlet extraction was ± 0.009 and ± 0.007 ug/g, with 24 and 13 degrees of freedom respectively.     

Comparison of supercritical fluid and Soxhlet extractions for the quantification of hydrocarbons from Euphorbia macroclada

This study compares conventional Soxhlet extraction and analytical scale supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) for their yields in extracting of hydrocarbons from arid-land plant Euphorbia macroclada. The plant material was firstly sequentially extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide, modified with 10% methanol (v/v) in the optimum conditions that is a pressure of 400 atm and a temperature of 50 °C and then it was sonicated in methylene chloride for an additional 4 h. E. macroclada was secondly extracted by using a Soxhlet apparatus at 30 °C for 8 h in methylene chloride. The validated SFE was then compared to the extraction yield of E. macroclada with a Soxhlet extraction by using the Student’s t-test at the 95% confidence level. All of extracts were fractionated with silica-gel in a glass column to get better hydrocarbon yields. Thus, the highest hydrocarbons yield from E. macroclada was achieved with SFE (5.8%) when it compared with Soxhlet extractions (1.1%). Gas chromatography (GC) analysis was performed to determine the quantitative hydrocarbons from plant material. The greatest quantitative hydrocarbon recovery from GC was obtained by supercritical carbon dioxide extract (0.6 mg g⁻¹).     

Comparison by capillary SFC and SFC-MS of soxhlet and supercritical fluid extraction of hamster feces

Components of hamster feces ranging from low molecular weight fatty acids through the expected range of triglycerides have been eluted in a single SFC run with simultaneous pressure and temperature programming. Temperature programming from 140°C to 240°C was required to provide optimum conditions for separation of the fatty acids and to move the elution region of the sterol esters away from that of the triglycerides. Data from chemical ionization and electron impact mass spectrometry of compounds separated by SFC were used to confirm identities suggested by retention measurements and to provide tentative identities of unknown compounds. SFC with flame ionization detection was used to compare Soxhlet extraction, off-line supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), and on-line SFE of the feces. Although samples obtained by Soxhlet extraction and SFE produced very similar chromatograms, SFE required far less time and consumed much smaller quantities of organic solvent.     

Supercritical fluid extraction of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin from sediment samples

Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) is a promising technique for the extraction of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD) from environmental matrices such as contaminated sediments. The ability of SFE to solubilize many organic contaminants is well documented in industrial processes but its analytical applications were exploited just recently. In this study supercritical carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide and their mixtures with 2% methanol were used to extract 2,3,7,8-TCDD from aquatic sediments. An attractive feature of this process is that the carbon dioxide, being a virtually inert fluid, leaves no solvent residue on the processed sediment. Almost 100% of the 2,3,7,8-TCDD can be extracted from a sediment spiked with 200 μg/kg 2,3,7,8-TCDD in 30 minutes by using supercritical carbon dioxide + 2% methanol. Cleanup procedure is compared with the Soxhlet extraction procedure currently used as a standard method for extracting dioxins from sediment samples.     

Effect of temperature,collection mode,and modifier on the supercritical CO2 extraction of dicofol residues from fish samples

Toxicity evaluation of Dicofol to Astyanax bimaculatus schubarti, a characteristic fish species living in tropical rivers and lakes was carried out through LC₅₀ – 96 Hours. These experiments were performed under laboratory controlled conditions with atmospheric air flow and dilution water at 25°C in the static mode, supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) with pure CO₂ and CO₂ modified with hexane and methanol were used at 50, 70, 80, and 100°C and 300 atm. Several collection modes were studied to extract Dicofol from fish samples. The extraction efficiencies were directly comparedd with those obtained after 8 h of Soxhlet extraction using the same clean-up with Florisil and analysis by HRGC/ECD and HRGC/MS as a confirmatory analytical technique. The SFE recoveries at temperatures lower than 80°C were typically lower than soxhlet recoveries; however a temperature increase enhanced the efficiency of SFE. The results showed that under certain conditions, supercritical fluid gave higher extractio power (extracted 11 % more pesticide), shorter extraction time, and lower solvent consumption than Soxhlet, thus affording an excellent alternative to the conventional method for extracting Dicofol from fish sample.     

Improved SFE recovery of trace analytes from liver using an integral micrometering valve–SPE column holder assembly

A novel integral restrictor–collector has been designed for use with a conventional supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) apparatus. The assembly reduces the path length between a micrometering valve and collector (a solid phase extraction (SPE) column), obviating the need for the complicated tubing and connectors usually associated with such devices. Also described is a heating-block assembly which encases the micrometering valve and provides uniform heating of the valve during extraction. The valve–SPE column assembly was part of a system used to perform the first reported SFE multi-residue drug recovery from fortified liver. Extractions used carbon dioxide pressurized to 690 bar as the supercritical fluid. Flow rates of expanded gas through the SPE columns were 3–4 L/min with concomitant quantitative trapping of the analytes on the sorbent bed. After SFE the three nitrobenzamide antimicrobial drug residues from the liver were eluted from the SPE columns by off-line analysis. The results demonstrated that losses of trace level analytes in tissue may be significantly reduced by including an integral metering valve-collector assembly as part of the SFE apparatus.     

基于Hansen溶度参数的煤直接液化残渣超临界萃取

以丙酮、 异丙醇和苯为溶剂在超临界状态下对煤直接液化残渣进行萃取, 应用溶度参数分析了超临界萃取环境中溶剂和萃取原料的变化; 基于Hansen拓展方法建立了关联Hansen溶度参数和萃取收率的理论方程. 结果表明, 临界温度较高. 以色散力溶度参数为主的苯的萃取收率明显高于其它2种溶剂; 液化残渣中可萃出组分的理想溶解度随温度的升高而增大, 该效应也是超临界溶剂萃取重质组分时萃取收率提高的重要原因; 萃取收率与Hansen溶度参数之间的回归模型与实验结果具有较好的一致性, 证明Hansen溶度参数理论和Hansen拓展方法适用于描述煤直接液化残渣的超临界萃取过程.     

Application of Supercritical fluid Extraction For Analysis of Organophosphates in Cereals

Abstract

Application of supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) utilizing pure carbon dioxide for selective isolation of organophosphates from contaminated cereals has been tested.

At the beginning of the experiments the extractability of added standards from an empty extraction vessel (thimble) and from various materials such as filter paper, sand, Celite and anhydrous sodium sulfate was tested to estimate the behavior of organophosphates. Further method development was carried out using a spiked sample of flour, which was analyzed within the proficiency testing for organophosphorus pesticides analysis (round 7) organized by Food Analysis Performance Assessment Scheme (FAPAS, MAFF-UK).

Comparison of the SFE method with a classical method currently employed for sample preparation (i.e. extraction with acetone/methanol mixture followed by gel permeation chromatographic clean up) showed advantages of the SFE technique such as simplification of the sample preparation step and thereby significant speeding up of the determination of organophosphates in cereals.     

Isolation and Extraction of Total Flavonoids from Epimedium Koreanum Nakai by Supercritical Fluid Extraction

In the present paper is reported the metnocl for the isolation and extraction of total flavonoids of Epimedium Koreanum Nateai by means of supercritical fluid extraction(SFE). By examining pressure, temperature, amounts of modifier and extraction time, the optimized condition of SFE is confirmed as 30 MPa and 60℃, with 70% ethanol as the modifier. The samples were statically extracted for 30 min, followed bydynamic extraction for 120 min at a flow rate of 6 mL/min. The quantitative analysis of total flavonoids was performed by UV-Vis spectrophotometry. Compared with the conventional method, the SFE method is more efficient, more rapid and more friendly environmentally.     

Comparaison de différentes méthodes d'extraction d'acides dicaféoylquiniques à partir d'une plante halophile

The aim of this study is the evaluation of different extraction methods for dicaffeoylquinic acids (diCQA), previously identified by a LC-DAD-ESI-QTOF dereplication strategy from a halophyte plant rich in polyphenols. Three different eco-friendly extraction methods are tested: microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), pressurized fluid extraction (PFE), supercritical fluid extraction (SFE). Various specific parameters are optimized for each of them. Global extraction yields are calculated for all extracts. Moreover, the extracts are analyzed by HPLC–DAD–ELSD, and the obtained profiles are compared to estimate qualitatively and semi-quantitatively their composition. The practicality of each technique is also discussed. The results show that the various parameters tested for PFE and MAE do not drastically affect the extraction of our interest compounds. However, the parameters tested on SFE are more decisive, such as the addition of a modifier in CO₂, which allows the extraction of diCQA.     

Trapping Efficiencies of Various Adsorbents in Supercritical Fluid Extraction with Modified Carbon Dioxide

One way of collecting extracted analytes after a supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) is to pass the depressurized fluid through a trap composed of a solid adsorbent. The influence of the adsorbent nature on the trap efficiency has been studied. First, the retention factors of each compound of a polarity test mix (tetracosane, naphthalene, fluoranthene, acetophenone, N,N-dimethylaniline, 2-naphthol, decanoic acid) have been determined on five high specific area (greater than 800 m²/g) polymeric phases by supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC). The comparison of this values with those obtained on octadecyl silica (ODS) showed that polymeric phases have the greatest retention power. After that, the efficiency of a solid trap filled with the greatest retention power polymeric adsorbent was evaluated by using pure carbon dioxide and 2.5%, 5%, 10%, and 20% methanol-modified carbon dioxide. As expected, this trap permitted a quantitative collection of all the former compounds even when a content as high as 10% of methanol was implemented. A solid trap filled with ODS adsorbent allowed quantitative collection of all the compounds only at a methanol content lower than 2.5%.     

Extraction of polycyclic aromatic nitrogen heterocycles from spiked soil samples

Extraction recovery of 10 selected polycyclic aromatic nitrogen heterocycles (PANHs), quinoline, 2-methylquinoline, 6-methylquinoline, 8-methylquinoline, acridine, benzo[h]quinoline, phenantridine, indole, 2-methylindole, and carbazole from spiked soil samples was tested. Four different extraction techniques, pressurized solvent extraction (PSE), supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), Soxhlet warm extraction (SOXW) and standard Soxhlet extraction (SOX), were applied and compared. The RP-HPLC technique with a silica-based octadecyl stationary phase was used for recovery determination of individual PANHs. Supercritical fluid extraction has been found to be the most effective method for the extraction of selected PANHs from soil. PSE and SOXW methods offered similar results with slightly lower extraction recoveries compared with SFE. On the contrary, SOX is a time-consuming method with a low recovery of target analytes and is not suitable for the extraction of PANHs from soils.