On-line trace enrichment of phenolic compounds from water using a pyrrole-based polymer as the solid-phase extraction sorbent coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography

A pyrrole-based conductive polymer was prepared and applied as new sorbent for on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) of phenol and chlorophenols from water samples. Polypyrrole (PPy) was synthesized by chemical oxidation of the monomer in non-aqueous solution. The efficiency of this polymer for extraction of phenol and chlorophenols was evaluated using 35 mg of PPy as the sorbent in an on-line SPE system coupled to reversed-phase liquid chromatography with UV detection. The mobile phase were mixture of phosphate buffer-acetonitrile and compounds were eluted by the mobile phase using a six-port switching valve. High volumes of water, up to 160 ml, could be preconcentrated without the loss of phenols, except for the more polar ones. The R.S.D. for a river water sample spiked with phenol and chlorophenols at sub-ppb level was lower than 7% (n=5) and detection limits of 15-100 and 35-150 ng l⁻¹ for tap and river water were obtained, respectively.     

A comparison of the performance of two chromatographic and three extraction techniques for the analysis of PAHS in sources of drinking water

The aim of this work is to establish a sensitive and reliable method for the analysis of the 16 priority Environmental Protection Agency-defined polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) found in water samples. Gas chromatography (GC)-mass spectrometry (MS) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-fluorescence detection (FLD)-UV techniques are optimized to obtain an adequate resolution of all compounds. Validation of the methods is carried out, and a good performance is observed for both techniques. The HPLC-FLD-UV technique is somewhat more sensitive than the GC-MS technique for the determination of PAHs; thus, the HPLC-FLD-UV method is used to follow up both the solid-phase extraction (SPE) analysis using cartridges and discs and the liquid-liquid extraction (LLE), which are also evaluated for the extraction of the PAHs. Low recoveries between 43% and 79% are obtained using SPE cartridges, and higher values are obtained using SPE discs (56-96%) and LLE (60-105%). Better results are obtained using the LLE technique, and, thus, analysis of real water samples is carried out using this technique. LODs between 0.6 and 21 ng/L and relative standard deviations less than 15% are obtained using a spiked water sample analyzed using the full LLE HPLC-FLD-UV method.     

Sensitive determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in water samples by HPLC coupled with SPE based on graphene functionalized with triethoxysilane

The graphene functionalized with (3‐aminopropyl) triethoxysilane was synthesized by a simple hydrothermal reaction and applied as SPE sorbents to extract trace polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from environmental water samples. These sorbents possess high adsorption capacity and extraction efficiency due to strong adsorption ability of carbon materials and large specific surface area of nanoparticles, and only 10 mg of sorbents are required to extract PAHs from 100 mL water samples. Several condition parameters, such as eluent and its volume, adsorbent amount, sample volume, sample pH, and sample flow rate, were optimized to achieve good sensitivity and precision. Under the optimized extraction conditions, the method showed good linearity in the range of 1–100 μg/L, repeatability of the extraction (the RSDs were between 1.8 and 2.9%, n = 6), and satisfactory detection limits of 0.029–0.1 μg/L. The recoveries of PAHs spiked in environmental water samples ranged from 84.6 to 109.5%. All these results demonstrated that this new SPE technique was a viable alternative to conventional enrichment techniques for the extraction and analysis of PAHs in complex samples.     

Solid-phase extraction of polar compounds with a hydrophilic copolymeric sorbent

A new synthesized copolymer based on N-vinylimidazole-divinylbenzene (VIm-DVB) was tested as a sorbent for the solid-phase extraction (SPE) of polar analytes. In the on-line SPE, this synthesized sorbent enabled 100 ml of sample to be preconcentrated with recoveries as high as 80% for oxamyl, phenol (Ph) and derivates, bentazone and (4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy)acetic acid (MCPA). For the off-line SPE, 1000 ml of sample was extracted and recoveries were higher than 92% for all compounds with the exception of oxamyl (83%) and methomyl (78%). The VIm-DVB sorbent gives better recoveries than the previously synthesized 4-vinylpyridine-divinylbenzene (VP-DVB) resin and similar to such highly crosslinked commercial sorbents as LiChrolut EN or Oasis HLB. Real water samples were used to validate the on-line SPE method. Linearity was good and detection limits were between 0.1 and 0.2 microg l(-1).     

Solid-phase extraction with C30 bonded silica for analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in airborne particulate matters by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A solid-phase extraction (SPE) method using triacontyl bonded silica (C30) as sorbent was developed for the determination of 16 US Environmental Protection Agency polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in airborne particulate matters quantitatively by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Optimization experiments were conducted using spiked standard aqueous solution of PAHs and real airborne particulates samples aiming to obtain highest SPE recoveries and extraction efficiency. Factors were studied in SPE procedures including the concentration of organic modifier, flow rate of sample loading and elution solvents. The ultrasonication time and solvents were also investigated. Recoveries were in the range of 68-107% for standard PAHs aqueous solution and 61-116% for real spiked sample. Limits of detection (LODs) and limits of quantification (LOQs) with standard solution were in the range of 0.0070-0.21 microgL(-1) and 0.022-0.67 microgL(-1), respectively. The optimized method was successfully applied to the determination of 16 PAHs in real airborne particulate matters.     

Evaluation of a new hypercrosslinked polymer as a sorbent for solid-phase extraction of polar compounds

A new hypercrosslinked polymer (HXLGp) with hydrophilic character due to the presence of hydroxyl moieties has been tested as a sorbent for the solid-phase extraction (SPE) of several polar compounds from water samples. This new sorbent enables the on-line extraction of 300 ml of sample with recoveries higher than 80% for polar compounds such as oxamyl, methomyl or desisopropylatrazine (DIA). The HXLGp has also been compared to other commercially available sorbents such as Oasis HLB (hydrophilic macroporous), to hydrophobic hypercrosslinked resins and to a previously synthesized sorbent based on N-vinylimidazole-divinylbenzene. The results are consistently better with the new synthesized sorbent. The method was successfully applied to the on-line SPE-HPLC of tap and river water samples. The validation with river water samples provided good linearity range and detection limits between 0.03 for methomyl and 4-nitrophenol (4NP) to 0.2 microg l(-1) for phenol (Ph).     

Using Zn/Al layered double hydroxide as a novel solid-phase extraction adsorbent to extract polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons at trace levels in water samples prior to the determination of gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

This paper demonstrates, for the first time, the great potential of using Zn/Al layered double hydroxide intercalated sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (Zn/Al-SDBS-LDH) as a solid-phase extraction (SPE) material in the extraction of persistent organic pollutants prior to the determination of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry in environmental water samples. Zn/Al-SDBS-LDH, a relatively inexpensive and simply prepared material, was synthesized and used as a SPE adsorbent to quantitatively determine the concentration of five polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in environmental water samples. Factors affecting extraction efficiency, such as, eluent type, eluent volume, flow rate of sample, sample volume, and amount of adsorbent, were investigated and optimized in detail. Experimental results indicate that there is an excellent linear relationship between peak area and the concentration of PAHs over the range of 5-500 ng L(-1), and the precisions (relative standard deviation (RSD)) were 2.5-6.3% under the optimum conditions. Based on the ratio of chromatographic signal-to-base line noise (S/N = 3), the limits of detection could reach 1.2-3.2 ng L(-1). This novel method was successfully applied to the analysis of PAHs in environmental water samples. As such, we show here that the use of Zn/Al-SDBS-LDH as SPE adsorbent materials, coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, is an excellent improvement in the routine analysis of PAHs at trace levels in the environment.     

Simultaneous determination of selected endocrine disrupters (pesticides,phenols and phthalates) in water by in-field solid-phase extraction (SPE) using the prototype PROFEXS followed by on-line SPE (PROSPEKT) and analysis by liquid chromatography-atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation-mass spectrometry

In this study, a new procedure, based on on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) and analysis by liquid-chromatography-atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry (LC-APCI-MS), has been developed for the simultaneous, multianalyte determination of 21 selected pesticides, phenols and phthalates in water. SPE was carried out on polymeric PLRP-s cartridges by percolating 20 mL-samples. For sample preconcentration, the performance of a prototype programmable field extraction system (PROFEXS) was evaluated against the commercial laboratory bench Prospekt system used for method development. The Profexs is designed for the automated on-site sampling, SPE preconcentration, and storage of up to 16 samples in SPE cartridges. These cartridges are further eluted and on-line analyzed with the Prospekt coupled to the chromatographic system. In the optimized method, where completely on-line SPE-LC-MS analysis of the samples is carried out with the Prospekt in the laboratory, detection limits lower than 100 ng/L, and satisfactory precision (relative standard deviations <25%) and accuracies (recovery percentages >75%) were obtained for most investigated compounds from the analysis of spiked Milli-Q water. The extraction efficiency achieved with the Profexs was comparable to that of the Prospekt for most compounds and somewhat lower for the most apolar analytes, probably due to adsorption on the pump filters. The completely on-line optimized method was applied to the analysis of surface water, ground water and drinking water from a waterworks in Barcelona. Some pesticides and phenols were found in both surface water and groundwater at ng/L or µg/L levels, but not in the final drinking water. Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) was present in all samples investigated, including blanks. To the author's knowledge, this is the first work describing the application of a fully automated on-line SPE-LC-MS method for the simultaneous analysis of pesticides, phenols, and phthalates in water, and the second one that examines the possibilities of the prototype Profexs for automated on-site SPE preconcentration of organic pollutants from water samples.     

Solid-phase extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in surface water. Negative effect of humic acid

The effect of humic acid on solid-phase extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from surface water was studied. The hydrophobic PAHs show significant association with humic acid, and this was confirmed to be the cause of negative effect when conventional reversed-phase solid-phase extraction (RP-SPE) was employed to extract the analytes from aqueous samples. As an alternative, dynamic ion-exchange (DIE) SPE could simultaneously extract both the fraction of the analytes which was associated with humic acid, and that which was freely dissolved. Using the 16 US Environmental Protection Agency priority PAHs as model compounds, the recoveries of the highly hydrophobic components by DIE-SPE were 10-30% higher than those by RP-SPE for a 1000-ml water sample dissolved with Aldrich humic acid (of 4.1 mg/l dissolved organic carbon content). A similar result was also obtained for 500 ml of natural surface water although the difference in recoveries between the two methods for this sample was smaller than that for the simulated sample. For validation of the method, the artifacts in connection with DIE-SPE in extracting the fraction of analytes which was freely dissolved and that which was associated with humic acid were investigated.     

在线固相萃取-液相色谱法直接测定水中超痕量多环芳烃

建立了在线固相萃取-液相色谱直接测定水体中16种超痕量多环芳烃（PAHs）的方法。水样经高速离心后，加入适量甲醇，配制成40%（体积分数）甲醇水溶液，直接进样2 mL至在线固相萃取流路，进行萃取富集，再通过阀切换将洗脱的PAHs转移至分析流路进行分离检测。16种PAHs在各自范围内线性关系良好，相关系数均大于0.996；方法的检出限为0.14~12.50 ng/L，其中苯并[a]芘（B（a）P）的检出限为0.38 ng/L。实际水样在10、40和200 ng/L加标水平下的加标回收率为76.1%~134.9%，RSD为0.3%~16.6%。B（a）P在1 ng/L加标水平下的回收率为71.8%~92.7%，RSD为3.9%。结果表明，该方法操作简单，灵敏度高，溶剂消耗量少，可满足水样中PAHs，尤其是B（a）P的超痕量分析要求。     

用固相萃取技术富集水中多环芳烃

系统地研究了淋洗剂强度、用量和有机改性剂的加入对固相萃取水中多环芳烃回收率的影响。研究表明,二氯甲烷和苯的洗脱效果较好,回收率为８７％～１０２％;当淋洗剂的用量超过１．５ｍＬ时,对多环芳烃的回收率没有明显的影响;向自来水样中加入２０％有机改性剂可明显改善多环芳烃的回收效果,使回收率达到８９％～１０８％。     

Determination of organic compounds in water using dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction

A new microextraction technique termed dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) was developed. DLLME is a very simple and rapid method for extraction and preconcentration of organic compounds from water samples. In this method, the appropriate mixture of extraction solvent (8.0 microL C2Cl4) and disperser solvent (1.00 mL acetone) are injected into the aqueous sample (5.00 mL) by syringe, rapidly. Therefore, cloudy solution is formed. In fact, it is consisted of fine particles of extraction solvent which is dispersed entirely into aqueous phase. After centrifuging, the fine particles of extraction solvent are sedimented in the bottom of the conical test tube (5.0 +/- 0.2 microL). The performance of DLLME is illustrated with the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in water samples by using gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID). Some important parameters, such as kind of extraction and disperser solvent and volume of them, and extraction time were investigated. Under the optimum conditions the enrichment factor ranged from 603 to 1113 and the recovery ranged from 60.3 to 111.3%. The linear range was 0.02-200 microg/L (four orders of magnitude) and limit of detection was 0.007-0.030 microg/L for most of analytes. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) for 2 microg/L of PAHs in water by using internal standard were in the range 1.4-10.2% (n = 5). The recoveries of PAHs from surface water at spiking level of 5.0 microg/L were 82.0-111.0%. The ability of DLLME technique in the extraction of other organic compounds such as organochlorine pesticides, organophosphorus pesticides and substituted benzene compounds (benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylenes) from water samples were studied. The advantages of DLLME method are simplicity of operation, rapidity, low cost, high recovery, and enrichment factor.     

Hydrophilic hypercrosslinked polymeric sorbents for the solid-phase extraction of polar contaminants from water

Three new hypercrosslinked polymers with hydrophilic character arising from hydroxyl moieties in their skeletons have been prepared in microsphere format and applied to the off-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) of polar compounds from water samples. For sample volumes of 1000 ml, the recoveries of various polar pesticides, such as oxamyl, methomyl, selected phenolic compounds, as well as some pharmaceuticals, were close to 90%. The HXLPP-polar polymer with the best performance characteristics was applied to real samples. Its performance was also compared to commercially available sorbents, such as LiChrolut EN (hydrophobic, hypercrosslinked), Oasis HLB (hydrophilic, macroporous) and Isolute ENV+ (hydrophilic, hypercrosslinked); the new sorbent out-performed the commercially available sorbents. The polymer was applied successfully in off-line SPE of river water samples followed by liquid chromatography and ultraviolet detection, providing a good linear range and detection limits of 0.2 μg l⁻¹ for the majority of the compounds, with the exception of oxamyl, methomyl, guaiacol and salicylic acid where the detection limit was 0.5 μg l⁻¹.     

Determination of pesticides originating from golf courses by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A multi-residue method using liquid chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), associated with solid-phase extraction (SPE), was developed for the determination of 21 pesticides in water samples. The compounds investigated are used for the maintenance of golf courses and ordinarily measured by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Electrospray ionisation (ESI) was applied to all compounds, and LC and MS conditions were optimised to measure them under SRM mode. This method showed excellent linearity ranges for all pesticides, with correlation coefficients greater than 0.996. Two kinds of extraction cartridges, namely, styrene divinylbenzene polymer (Sep-Pak PS-2) and divinylbenzene-N-vinylpyrrolidone copolymer (Oasis HLB), were tested and the extraction conditions were optimised. All the pesticides were determined using acetonitrile and ethyl acetate as eluents in both cartridges, and good recoveries (>77%) and repeatability with low relative standard deviations (RSDs, <12%) were achieved from ultra-pure water. In addition, satisfactory recoveries (>76%) and low intra-day and inter-day RSDs (<15%) of all pesticides were also obtained with the Sep-Pak PS-2 cartridge when using river water. The method limits of detection (LODs) ranged between 0.068 (diazinon) and 3.9 (triclopyrbutoxyethyl)?ng?L^?1. The analytical method was successfully applied for the determination of pesticides in surface river water.     

β-Cyclodextrin epichlorohydrin copolymer as a solid-phase extraction adsorbent for aromatic compounds in water samples

A novel solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedure for trace aromatic compounds in water samples has been developed using 12 aromatic compounds as model compounds and GC-MS and UV spectrophotometry for detection. The method is based on the fact that β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) epichlorohydrin (ECH) copolymer (β-CDEP) can extract non-ionized aromatic compounds quantitatively from aqueous samples. The polymer used is a colorless, transparent and insoluble solid with a maximum capacity of 0.82 μmol aromatic compounds per gram. It was synthesized by co-polymerization of β-CD and ECH and characterized by FT-IR and UV. β-CDEP does not contain double bonds, and therefore it does not have appreciable absorbance in the UV region. The optimum pH range for the extraction of aromatic compounds is 2.5-5.0. The method has high extraction efficiency with the recoveries between 90 and 101% for aromatic compounds at 0.02-1.67 ppm levels, and the analytes can be easily eluted by methanol washing after preconcentration.     

Development of novel magnetic solid-phase extraction sorbent based on Fe<Subscript>3</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript>/carbon nanosphere/polypyrrole composite and their application to the enrichment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from water samples prior to GC–FID analysis

We describe a magnetic nanocomposite that consists of Fe₃O₄/carbon nanosphere/polypyrrole (Fe₃O₄/CNS/PPy). The synthesized nanocomposites were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The nanocomposite was successfully applied to extract of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from water samples. Compared to Fe₃O₄/PPy, the Fe₃O₄/CNS/PPy nanocomposite exhibits improved properties in terms of extraction. The amount of adsorbent, salt effect, extraction time, desorption time, type, and the volume of desorption solvent were optimized. Following the desorption of the extracted analytes, the PAHs (i.e., naphthalene, 2-methylnaphthalene, 2-bromonaphthalene, fluorene, and anthracene) were quantified by gas chromatography–flame ionization detector. The PAHs can be determined in 0.05–100.00 ng mL^?1 concentration range, with limits of detection (at an S/N ratio of 3) ranging from 0.01 to 0.05 ng mL^?1. The repeatability of the method was investigated with relative standard deviations of lower than 9.9% (n = 5). Also, the recoveries from spiked real water samples were in the range of 88.9–99.0%. The results indicate that the novel material can be successfully applied for the extraction and analysis of PAHs from water samples.     

Selective solid-phase extraction using molecularly imprinted polymer for the analysis of polar organophosphorus pesticides in water and soil samples

An analytical methodology for the analysis of four polar organophophorus pesticides (monocrotophos, mevinphos, phosphamidon, omethoate) in water and soil samples incorporating a molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) process using a monocrotophos-imprinted polymer was developed. Binding study demonstrated that the polymer showed excellent affinity and high selectivity to monocrotophos. The MISPE procedure including the clean-up step to remove any interferences was optimized. The accuracy and selectivity of the MISPE process developed were verified using a non-imprinted (blank) polymer and a classical ENVI-18 cartridge as the SPE matrix during control experiments. The use of MISPE improved the accuracy and precision of the GC method and lowered the limit of detection. The recoveries of four polar organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) extracted from 1 L of river water at a 100 ng/L spike level were in the range of 77.5-99.1%. The recoveries of organophosphorus pesticides extracted from a 5-g soil sample at the 100 microg/kg level were in the range of 79.3-93.5%. The limit of detection varied from 10 to 32 ng/L in water and from 12 to 34 microg/kg in soil samples. The molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) enabled the selective extraction of four organophosphorus pesticides successfully from water and soil samples, demonstrating the potential of molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction for rapid, selective, and cost-effective sample pretreatment.     

石墨烯固相萃取测定水中稠环芳烃

建立了石墨烯固相萃取柱萃取和高效液相色谱法检测8种稠环芳烃的方法。采用紫外检测器进行定性和定量分析。对包括吸附剂的种类、洗脱剂的种类和用量、样品溶液的pH和样品体积等实验参数进行了详细优化。在优化条件下,8种稠环芳烃在0.0200～150μg/L浓度范围内与峰面积呈良好的线性关系,相关系数为0.990～0.996。信噪比为3时,稠环芳烃的检出限为0.0020～0.080μg/L。方法的精密度为1.30%～4.65%。将该方法用于环境水样分析,回收率为82.50%～106.5%。     

Solid phase extractive preconcentration coupled to gas chromatography-atomic emission detection for the determination of chlorophenols in water samples

Solid-phase extraction (SPE) followed by derivatization and gas chromatography-atomic emission detection (GC-AED) was evaluated for the determination of five chlorophenols (CPs) in water samples. The derivatization was based on the esterification of phenolic compounds with ferrocenecarboxylic acid. The determination of the derivatized phenols was performed by GC-AED in the iron selective detection mode at 302 nm. The described method was tested on spiked water samples.The overall method gave detection limits of 1.6-3.7 ng L⁻¹ and recoveries of 90.9-104.5% for the examined mono- to trichlorophenols in 10 mL water samples. The CPs extracted from a 10 mL water sample with SPE were concentrated into 100 μL of organic solvent, a preconcentration factor of 100. The method was applied to lake and tap water samples, and CP contents between 6 and 51 ng L⁻¹ in lake water and between below the detection limit and 8 ng L⁻¹ in tap water were found for different CPs. The method is quick, simple and gives excellent recoveries, limits of detection and standard deviations.     

全二维气相色谱-飞行时间质谱测定地下水中低环多环芳烃及其衍生物

建立了地下水中低环多环芳烃及其衍生物的全二维气相色谱-飞行时间质谱(GC×GC-TOF MS)检测方法。对比研究了液液萃取(LLE)和固相萃取(SPE)对地下水中低环多环芳烃及其衍生物的提取效率,优选液液萃取为前处理方法。在优化条件下,除1,2,3,4-四氢萘(r=0.987 2)和联苯(r=0.989 9)外,其它目标物在0.1~1 000μg/L范围内具有良好的线性关系,相关系数(r)均大于0.99。地下水的平均加标回收率为63.3%~111%,除喹啉的相对标准偏差(RSD,n=6)为24.9%外,其余目标物的RSD均小于9.5%,方法检出限在1.63~14.7 ng/L之间。该方法用于河北地区6个地下水样中低环多环芳烃及其衍生物的检测,4个样品有检出,最高浓度达353 ng/L。