Determination of Microcystins in Cyanobacteria by Supercritical Fluid Extraction and Liquid Chromatography‐Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

A method for the detection of microcystins (microcystin LR, RR, and YR) in cyanobacteria by supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry (LC/MS) has been developed. Supercritical fluids for the analytical extraction of nonvolatile, higher molecular weight compound, and microcystins from cyanobacteria were investigated. The microcystins included in this study are sparsely soluble in neat supercritical fluid CO₂. However, the microcystins was successfully extracted with a ternary mixture (90% CO₂, 9.5% methanol, 0.5% water) at 40°C and 250 atm. The polar carbon dioxide‐aqueous methanol fluid system gave high extraction efficiency for the extraction of the polar microcystins from cyanobacteria. The microcystins were determined by liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS).     

Extraction of cationic surfactant templates from mesoporous materials by CH(3)OH-modified CO(2) supercritical fluid

Extraction of cationic surfactant templates from MCM-41, MCM-48, SBA-1 and SBA-3 has been conducted using CH₃OH-modified CO₂ supercritical fluid. The supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) has been integrated with thermogravimetry (TG), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and N₂ adsorption-desorption to evaluate extraction efficiency and structural stability of mesoporous materials. Experiments of optimization indicate that the conditions of 90 bar, 85 °C, CH₃OH/CO₂ = 0.1/1.0 ml/min and 3 h are most suitable for the SFE of cationic templates. 76-95% of the cationic templates can be extracted from the mesoporous materials. XRD and N₂ adsorption-desorption studies illustrate that SFE possesses some advantages over calcination in maintaining mesoporous uniformity and structural stability when used to remove templates. The impact of curing on mesoporous structure is also dealt with.     

New Device for Adding Polar Modifiers to Carbon Dioxide Mobile Phase for Supercritical Fluid Chromatography

Abstract

Adding additional components to supercritical carbon dioxide in supercritical fluid chromatography can extend or significantly alter the fluid solvating properties. Polar samples which are difficult to be analyzed with pure supercritical CO₂ because of their high polarity can be separated by adding polar modifiers to supercritical CO₂. In this paper, a new mixing device using a teflon high capacity filter for adding polar modifiers to carbon dioxide mobile phase is introduced. This new mixing device could keep the amount of modifier in the mobile phase constant for a much longer time than a saturator column. The amount of water or methanol dissolved in supercritical CO₂ was measured by amperometric microsensor which is made of thin film of perfluorosulfonate ionomer(PFSI).     

Extraction equilibrium between primary amine primene 81R and iron(III) sulphate

The extraction equilibrium between aqueous iron (III) sulphate solutions and amine Primene 81R was studied. The results show that the free amine extracts iron(III) from these solutions. The extracted complex has been isolated and can be represented by the stoichiometric formula 4RNH₂·Fe₂(SO₄)₃. The extraction reaction is almost independent of temperature and change in the diluent of the organic phase. On the basis spectral studies a structure for the extracted complex is suggested.     

Colorimetric detection of uranium(VI) on building surfaces after enrichment by solid phase extraction

A method for detecting and quantifying uranium(VI) levels on building materials that include concrete, Plexiglas, glass and steel surfaces is presented. Uranium(VI) was extracted from building material surfaces using a pH 2.2 buffer rinse and, subsequently complexed by an organic chelating agent, arsenazo III. The application of a uranium-chelating molecule, arsenazo III, allows for concentration enhancement using C₁₈ solid phase extraction and colorimetric detection of the uranium complex using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy at 654 nm. The method has a detection limit (based on 3σ) of 40 ng/L (5 ng/cm²) and an overall extraction efficiency greater than 80% for each surface type (concrete, Plexiglas, glass, steel). Methods to prevent interference by metal ions commonly found on building materials are discussed.     

Evaluation of dithiocarbamates and beta-diketones as chelating agents in supercritical fluid extraction of Cd, Pb, and Hg from solid samples

The use of four dithiocarbamates and three fluorinated β-diketones as potential chelating agents for three transition metal ions (Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Hg²⁺) extracted from spiked sand and filter paper samples by supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) was investigated. The extractions were performed at 45°C and 250 atm for spiked sand samples and at 60°C and 200 atm for filter paper samples using supercritical carbon dioxide modified with 5% methanol. At 250 atm and using carbon dioxide modified with 5% methanol, the recoveries of Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Hg²⁺ ions from spiked sand samples were 95% with lithium bis(trifluoroethyl)dithiocarbamate (LiFDDC) as the chelating agent; they ranged from 83–97% with diethylammonium diethyldithiocarbamate and from 87–97% with sodium di-ethyldithiocarbamate as chelating agents, and from 68–96% with trifluoracetylacetone, hexafluoroacetylacetone, and thenoylfluoroacetone as chelating agents. Ammonium pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate was not effective in the chelation SFE of Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Hg²⁺ ions from either spiked sand or spiked filter paper samples under the extraction conditions used. Supercritical carbon dioxide alone gave consistently lower analyte recoveries than supercritical carbon dioxide modified with 5% methanol. The results suggest that the solubility of the metal chelate in the supercritical fluid plays a more important role than the solubility of the chelating agent in the supercritical fluid, as long as sufficient chelating agent is present in the fluid phase. Fluorination of the chelating agent, as in the case of LiFDDC, increases the solubility of the metal chelate, and subsequently enhances the extraction efficiency for the metal ions.     

Analytical supercritical fluid extraction of Chinese herbal medicines

Summary An analytical supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) technique, followed by GC/MS, was developed to separate and determine the volatile components in Chinese herbal medicine. Three kinds of herbs, frankincense, myrrh, andEvodia rutaecarpa were extracted and analyzed. The extraction was carried out using supercritical fluid CO₂ at 20 MPa and 50°C. The main factors affecting the efficiency and selectivity of the extraction are discussed. The results revealed the potential of supercritical fluid extraction as an analytical procedure for the study of medicinal plants.     

New device for controlling the amount of methanol in carbon dioxide mobile phase for supercritical fluid chromatography

A new device to accurately deliver a small amount of methanol into supercritical carbon dioxide fluid is described. Carbon dioxide, the most widely used mobile phase in supercritical fluid chromatography, is a relatively non-polar fluid, and hence the addition of a small amount of methanol could change the solvent strength of the mobile phase. In this work, supercritical CO₂ and methanol are delivered from the pump to a 100-μl mixing chamber in which a small magnetic bar is rotating. After passing through the mixing chamber, supercritical CO₂ is changed to a new mobile phase with different polarity. The modified mobile phase was successfully used for the separations of polar compounds and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).     

Capillary supercritical fluid chromatography with simultaneous flame ionization and mass spectrometric detection

A simple interface between a capillary supercritical fluid chromatograph and an Extranuclear Simulscan mass spectrometer is described. The SFC column is directly inserted into the ion source through the existing GC-interface. The system is equipped with a splitting device which allows simultaneous EI/MS and flame ionization detection when CO₂ is used as the supercritical phase. The effect of source temperature and pressure on CO₂ clustering was studied for optimization of source conditions. The performance of the system was evaluated with a series of model compounds and standard mixtures.     

Separation and preconcentration of U(VI) on XAD-4 modified with 8-hydroxy quinoline

Amberlite XAD-4 adsorber resin was modified with 8-hydroxy quinoline (Oxine) by equilibrating with methanol solution of the reagent and the modified resin was used as a support material for the solid phase extraction and preconcentration of UO₂²⁺ from aqueous solution at pH between 4 and 5.5. Ten micrograms of uranium from 300 ml of aqueous phase could be quantitatively extracted in to 1 g of the modified resin giving an enrichment of 200. Uranium collected in the column could be eluted out with methanol-HCl mixture and determined spectrophotometrically using arsenazo(III) as the chromogenic reagent. The preconcentration could be made selective to uranium by using EDTA as a masking agent for transition metal ions and Th(IV).     

On-Line coupling of supercritical fluid extraction with high performance liquid chromatography

Supercritical fluid extraction was coupled directly with high performance liquid chromatograph. The system was evaluated for direct injection of supercritical CO₂ and modified supercritical CO₂ at high pressure and temperature onto a HPLC system with varying mobile phase compositions and flow rates. Injection of 9 μL supercritical CO₂ onto the HPLC using methanol/water mobile phases from 100% methanol to 80% with a flow of 1.0 mL/min did not adversely affect the baseline of UV detector. However at higher percentages of water, CO₂ solubility in the mobile phase decreased and caused baseline interferences on the UV detector. At higher HPLC mobile phase flow rates, supercritical CO₂ was injected to higher percentages of water without any effect on the UV baseline. Also, increasing the extraction pressure or modifier concentration did not change the results. Separations of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons and linear alkenebenzene sulfonate test mixtures were obtained using on-line SFE/HPLC interfaced system.     

Stripping of photoresist on silicon wafer by CO(2) supercritical fluid

Supercritical CO₂-based fluid is not only being considered as environmentally benign medium for photoresist (PR) removal in electronic device manufacture, but also capable of challenging feature dimensions. Despite many attractive properties, clear supercritical CO₂ has little solvating power for PR. Here, two acetate modifiers were selective to add in the CO₂ and evaluated individual contribution to the overall stripping rate by factorial experiment design, which included four other factors with four level ranges for each one and concluded the best 90% extraction efficiency would be obtained under the optimized parameters: 2.5 min static time, 35 min dynamic time, 1.25 ml ethylacetate spiked, 125 °C oven temperature and 480 atm CO₂ pressure. As analyzing the variances of these contributors to this system, it disclosed that dynamics controlled the stripping mechanism before near 35 min purging but thermodynamics took over after then; and that increasing pressure was more competent for removing PR than increasing temperature. All supercritical extracts were from two commercial PR coated on two substrates and analyzed by UV absorption spectrometry. Removing PR coated on silicon oxide layer was easier than that on Al-Cu alloy one.     

Identification of lipophilic components in Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium cultivars by supercritical CO2 fluid extraction with ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography–Q Exactive Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry

To systematically identify the lipophilic constituents of Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium from different cultivars, supercritical CO₂ fluid extraction and ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography–Q Exactive Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry were integrated for the component analysis of 18 batches of Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium from 12 cultivars for the first time. A total of 57 components from the supercritical CO₂ fluid extracts were demonstrably or tentatively identified by the obtained parent peaks, fragment peaks, and retention times. In total, two flavonoids, six organic acids, nine coumarins, three aldehydes, seven esters, three terpenes, one limonoid, and five other compounds were detected for the first time; notably, coumarin components have not yet been reported in Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium. Furthermore, the extract constituents differed between cultivars. In particular, organic acids were more abundant in Citrus reticulata “Chachi” than in other cultivars, and pterostilbene was exclusively found in Citrus reticulata “Yichangju”. The results showed that a greater variety of compounds in Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium could be extracted by supercritical CO₂ fluid extraction and detected by ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography–Q Exactive Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry. This study provides a more scientific basis for further analysis of the pharmacological activity and quality of Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium components from different cultivars.     

Study of the amine primene 81R sulphate-Fe2(SO4)3 extraction equilibrium system at low temperatures

The extraction of iron(III) from aqueous sulphate solutions by Primene 81R sulphate at low temperatures was studied as a function of iron(III) and amine sulphate concentrations. In the range of temperatures between 8 and 5°C a complex with the stoichiometric formula 4(RNH₃)₂SO₄·[Fe(OH)SO₄]₂ is extracted. The extraction reaction may occur by adduct formation between the amine sulphate and the species [Fe(OH)SO₄]₂ from the aqueous phase and not by an anion exchange reaction. The extracted complex is a monomer in benzene solution; the spectral study suggests that the [Fe(OH)]⁴⁺₂ unit is present in its structure and the sulphate groups act as bidentate ligands.     

Selective extraction of thallium(III) in the presence of gallium(III), indium(III), bismuth(III) and antimony(III) by salting-out of an aqueous mixture of 2-propanol

Thallium(III), in the presence of other triply charged ions such as gallium, indium, bismuth and antimony in aqueous solution, was quantitatively and selectively extracted into 2-propanol/water phase by addition of NaCl ranging from 2.5 to 4.0 mol dm⁻³. The extraction efficiencies of gallium, indium, bismuth and antimony were much lower than that of thallium(III). Thus a maximal selective separation of thallium(III) from these elements could be attained using a 2-propanol/water mixture. Thallium(III) was extracted as TlCl₄⁻ with Na⁺. The detailed extraction mechanism in the presence of chloride, water in the organic phase and counter ions is discussed.     

Iron Extraction with Di(2-Ethylhexyl)dithiophosphoric Acid and a Binary Extractant Based on It

Iron(III) extraction with trioctylmethylammonium di(2-ethylhexyl)dithiophosphate and di(2- ethylhexyl)dithiophosphoric acid was studied. It was shown that di(2-ethylhexyl)dithiophosphoric acid extracts iron in the form of the complex FeA₂, regardless of the oxidation state of iron in the initial aqueous solution. It was also shown that the iron(III) extraction with trioctylmethylammonium di(2-ethylhexyl)dithiophosphate over a wide acidity range occurs primarily to produce extractable substance (R₄N)FeCl₄; and at pH > 1, iron(II) dialkyldithiophosphate is also extracted into the organic phase. It was established that, in a system with a binary extractant, iron can be efficiently stripped from the organic phase with water or diluted solutions of mineral acids.     

Optimisation of supercritical fluid extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their nitrated derivatives adsorbed on highly sorptive diesel particulate matter

Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) was performed to extract complex mixtures of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), nitrated derivatives (nitroPAHs) and heavy n-alkanes from spiked soot particulates that resulted from the incomplete combustion of diesel oils. This polluted material, resulting from combustion in a light diesel engine and collected at high temperature inside the particulate filter placed just after the engine, was particularly resistant to conventional extraction techniques, such as soxhlet extraction, and had an extraction behaviour that differed markedly from certified reference materials (SRM 1650). A factorial experimental design was performed, simultaneously modelling the influence of four SFE experimental factors on the recovery yields, i.e.: the temperature and the pressure of the supercritical fluid, the nature and the percentage of the organic modifier added to CO₂ (chloroform, tetrahydrofuran, methylene chloride), as a means to reach the optimal extraction yields for all the studied target pollutants. The results of modelling showed that the supercritical fluid pressure had to be kept at its maximum level (30 MPa) and the temperature had to be kept relatively low (75 °C). Under these operating conditions, adding 15% of methylene chloride to the CO₂ permitted quantitative extraction of not only light PAHs and their nitrated derivatives, but also heavy n-alkanes from the spiked soots. However, heavy polyaromatics were not quantitatively extracted from the refractory carbonaceous solid surface. As such, original organic modifiers were tested, including pyridine, which, as a strong electron donor cosolvent (15% into CO₂), was the most successful. The addition of diethylamine to pyridine, which enhanced the electron donor character of the cosolvent, even increased the extraction yields of the heaviest PAHs, leading to a quantitative extraction of all PAHs (more than 79%) from the diesel particulate matter, with detection limits ranging from 0.5 to 7.8 ng for 100 mg of spiked material. Concerning the nitrated PAHs, a small addition of acetic acid into pyridine, as cosolvents, gave the best results, leading to fair extraction yields (approximately 60%), with detection limits ranging from 18 to 420 ng.     

Optical fibre reflectance sensor for the determination and speciation analysis of iron in fresh and seawater samples coupled to a multisyringe flow injection system

A novel optical fibre reflectance sensor coupled to a multisyringe flow injection system (MSFIA) for the determination and speciation analysis of iron at trace level using chelating disks (iminodiacetic groups) is proposed. Once iron(III) has been retained onto a chelating disk, an ammonium thiocyanate stream is injected in order to form the iron(III)-thiocyanate complex which is spectrophotometrically detected at 480 nm. Iron(III) is eluted with 2 M hydrochloric acid so that the chelating disk is regenerated for subsequent experiments. The determination of total iron is achieved by the on-line oxidation of iron(II) to iron(III) with a suitable hydrogen peroxide stream.A mass calibration was feasible in the range from 0.001 to 0.25 μg. The detection limit (3s_b/S) was 0.001 μg. The repeatability (RSD), calculated from nine replicates using 1 ml injections of a 0.1 mg/l concentration, was 2.2%. The repeatability between five chelating disks was 3.6%. The applicability of the proposed methodology in fresh and seawater samples has been proved.The proposed technique has been validated by replicate analysis (n = 4) of certified reference materials of water with satisfactory results.     

Rhodium and palladium β-diketonate determination with on-line supercritical fluid extraction-high performance liquid chromatography via solid phase extraction

 An on-line system of supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) via solid phase extraction (SPE) is described for the determination of palladium and rhodium 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-3,5-heptanedione-(thd) as well as rhodium-acetylacetonate-(acac) and benzylacetonate-(bzac) chelates. The chelates were extracted with supercritical CO₂ from sand and humic acid, concentrated on SPE cartridges and analysed with HPLC. Two cartridge materials were tested and compared to off-line trapping. The percentage of the breakthrough and cartridge retained material were measured in liquid dichloromethane. The SFE conditions could be optimized to separate metal chelates during the extraction. The supercritical fluid (SF) behaviour of different ligands on rhodium were investigated. Received: 19 July 1996/Revised: 11 December 1996/Accepted: 14 December 1996     

Combination of ionic liquid-based dispersive liquid-liquid micro-extraction with stopped-flow spectrofluorometry for the pre-concentration and determination of aluminum in natural waters, fruit juice and food samples

In this research, we combined ionic liquid-based dispersive liquid-liquid micro-extraction (IL-based DLLME) with stopped-flow spectrofluorometry (SFS) to evaluate the concentration of aluminum in different real samples at trace level. 1-Hexylpyridinium hexafluorophosphate [Hpy][PF₆] ionic liquid and 8-hydroxyquinoline (oxine), which forms a highly fluorescent complex with Al³⁺, were chosen as the extraction solvent and chelating agent, respectively. The hydrophobic Al-oxine complex was extracted into the [Hpy][PF₆] and separated from the aqueous phase. Then, the concentration of the enriched aluminum in the sediment phase was determined by SFS. Some effective parameters that influence the SFS signals and the micro-extraction efficiency, such as the suction and sending time, the concentration of the chelating agent, pH, the amount of the ionic liquid, the type of disperser solvent and diluting agent, ionic strength, extraction time, equilibration temperature and centrifugation time were investigated and optimized. In the optimum experimental conditions, the limit of detection (3 s) and enrichment factor were 0.05 μg L⁻¹ and 100, respectively. The relative standard deviation (RSD) for six replicate determinations of 6 μg L⁻¹ Al was 1.7%. The calibration graph using the pre-concentration system was linear in the range of 0.06-15 μg L⁻¹ with a correlation coefficient of 0.9989. The developed method was validated by the analysis of certified reference materials and applied successfully to the determination of aluminum in several water, fruit juice and food samples.