Rapid determination of alkylphenols in aqueous samples by in situ acetylation and microwave-assisted headspace solid-phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A rapid and solvent‐free procedure for the determination of 4‐tert‐octylphenol and 4‐nonylphenol isomers in aqueous samples is described. The method involves in‐situ acetylation and microwave‐assisted headspace solid‐phase microextraction prior to their determination using gas chromatography–ion trap mass spectrometry operated in the selected ion storage mode. The dual experimental protocols to evaluate the effects of various derivatization and extraction parameters were investigated and the conditions optimized. Under optimized conditions, 300 μL of acetic anhydride mixed with 1 g of potassium hydrogencarbonate and 2 g of sodium chloride in a 20 mL aqueous sample were efficiently extracted by a 65 μm polydimethylsiloxane‐divinylbenzene fiber that was located in the headspace when the system was microwave irradiated at 80 W for 5 min. The limits of quantitation were 5 and 50 ng/L for 4‐tert‐octylphenol and 4‐nonylphenol isomers, respectively. The precision for these analytes, as indicated by relative standard deviations, were less than 8% for both intra‐ and inter‐day analysis. Accuracy, expressed as the mean extraction recovery, was between 74 to 88%. A standard addition method was used to quantitate 4‐tert‐octylphenol and 4‐nonylphenol isomers, and the concentrations ranged from 120 to 930 ng/L in various environmental water samples.     

Direct analysis of trace level bisphenol A,octylphenols and nonylphenol in bottled water and leached from bottles by ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A high‐throughput method was developed for the direct analysis of trace level bisphenol A (BPA), 4‐n‐octylphenol (4‐n‐OP), 4‐tert‐octylphenol (4‐t‐OP) and 4‐n‐nonylphenol (4‐n‐NP) in water samples by ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (uHPLC/MS/MS) using an isotope‐labeled internal standard. Aliquots of water samples were spiked with the internal standard and analyzed without sample cleanup or enrichment. All target analytes were chromatographically separated within 3 min and detected using the highly selective multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) detection mode. The method detection limits were statistically calculated and ranged from 0.040 ppb (BPA) to 0.057 ppb (4‐n‐NP). Excellent correlation of determination was achieved for each analyte with r greater than 0.995. Precision was achieved within 8% relative standard deviation (RSD) for all analytes, and recoveries from spiked samples ranged from 97% to 106.2% except for 4‐n‐OP which may be corrected by using an isotope‐labeled analog as internal standard. This method was used for analyzing eight randomly selected bottled water samples and found no detectable target analytes. This method was also used to analyze target analytes leached from bottles (6 low cost bottles and 6 brand‐name baby‐feeding bottles). Low levels of BPA were found in three bottles after they had been heated in a microwave oven, and a trace amount of 4‐n‐NP was also found in three bottles. 4‐t‐OP, which has not been reported as a leachable chemical, was found in two brand name baby‐feeding bottles from the same manufacturer, and was confirmed with bottles from different batches. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isotope dilution gas chromatography with mass spectrometry for the analysis of 4‐octyl phenol, 4‐nonylphenol,and bisphenol A in vegetable oils

By the combination of solid‐phase extraction as well as isotope dilution gas chromatography with mass spectrometry, a sensitive and reliable method for the determination of endocrine‐disrupting chemicals including bisphenol A, 4‐octylphenol, and 4‐nonylphenol in vegetable oils was established. The application of a silica/N‐(n‐propyl)ethylenediamine mixed solid‐phase extraction cartridge achieved relatively low matrix effects for bisphenol A, 4‐octylphenol, and 4‐nonylphenol in vegetable oils. Experiments were designed to evaluate the effects of derivatization, and the extraction parameters were optimized. The estimated limits of detection and quantification for bisphenol A, 4‐octylphenol, and 4‐nonylphenol were 0.83 and 2.5 μg/kg, respectively. In a spiked experiment in vegetable oils, the recovery of the added bisphenol A was 97.5–110.3%, recovery of the added 4‐octylphenol was 64.4–87.4%, and that of 4‐nonylphenol was 68.2–89.3%. This sensitive method was then applied to real vegetable oil samples from Zhejiang Province of China, and none of the target compounds were detected.     

Analysis of phenolic xenoestrogens by pressurized CEC with amperometric detection

A new method, pressurized CEC with end‐column amperometric detection using carbon paste electrode, has been developed for the separation and determination of five phenolic xenoestrogens in chicken eggs and milk powder samples. Efficient separation of five analytes was performed by pressurized CEC using a mobile phase consisting of 60% v/v ACN and 40% v/v Tris buffer (5 mmol/L, pH 8.0), +6 kV of applied voltage and 7.0 MPa of supplementary pressure. Detection limits of 50, 5, 2, 10 and 20 ng/mL for pentachlorophenol, bisphenol‐A, 2,4‐dichlorophenol, 4‐tert‐octylphenol and 4‐nonylphenol, respectively, were achieved using carbon paste electrode as working electrode and +0.8 V as detection potential. Matrix solid phase dispersion extraction method had been employed during sample preparation procedure, and mean recoveries ranged from 79.2 to 102.6% at different concentrations of phenolic xenoestrogens for spiked egg and milk powder samples were obtained.     

Determination of alkylphenolic residues in fresh fruits and vegetables by extractive steam distillation and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

This study describes a simple and sensitive method for determining the alkylphenolic compounds, 4-tert-octylphenol (4-t-OP), 4-nonylphenol isomers (4-NPs), and their monoethoxylates (4-t-OP1EO and 4-NP1EOs), in fresh fruits and vegetables. The method involves extracting a sample by a modified Nielson-Kryger steam distillation extraction using n-hexane for 1 h. The alkylphenolic compounds were identified and quantitated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode. Various pH values and amounts of NaCl added to the sample solution were evaluated as extraction conditions. The quantitation limit of this method was less than 0.2 ng/g in 10 g (fresh weight) of sample. Recovery of alkylphenolic compounds in spiked samples exceeded 64% while R.S.D. ranged from 1.0 to 9.8%. Alkylphenolic residues were detected in fresh fruits and vegetables at concentrations of 4-NPs and 4-t-OP from n.d. to 16 ng/g and from n.d. to 4.8 ng/g (fresh weight), respectively. NP1EO and OP1EO were always below the quantitation limit.     

高效液相色谱法测定饮料类食品中的类雌激素

利用OASIS HLB固相萃取柱富集和净化样品,采用高效液相色谱分离,紫外及荧光检测,建立了不同饮料基质中的壬基酚(NP)、辛基酚(OP)和双酚A(BPA)等类雌激素的测定方法,并用该方法对市售部分产品进行了测定。不同加标水平的BPA,NP和OP的回收率为91.08%~103.19%,其相对标准偏差为0.5%~5.49%。该方法具有操作简单、灵敏度高和重现性好等优点。     

Two polydimethylsiloxane rod extraction methods for the sensitive determination of phenolic compounds in water samples

Simple, precise, and low‐cost methods for the simultaneous determination of phenolic endocrine disrupting compounds such as bisphenol A, trichlorophenol, pentachlorophenol, 4‐nonylphenol, and 4‐octylphenol in water samples were developed. The Direct, in situ derivatization methods are based on polydimethylsiloxane rod extraction followed by liquid desorption and chromatographic analysis by liquid chromatography and diode array detection. Several parameters affecting the extraction and desorption of the phenolic compounds and their acetylated derivates were studied, as well as the chromatographic and detection conditions. For the direct method, determination coefficients (r²) > 0.990 and LODs in the 0.6–2 μg/L range were obtained for all compounds except bisphenol A (9.5 μg/L). With the derivatization‐based method, based on in situ acetylation, lower limits of detection (0.3–0.9 μg/L) were obtained for all the compounds with r² > 0.988 and RSDs in the 2–9% range. The developed methods were applied to the analysis of spiked water samples obtaining recoveries of between 60.2 and 131.7% for the direct method, and of between 76.6 and 108.2% for the derivatization‐based method. The results demonstrate the feasibility of using these two methods for determining bisphenol A, trichlorophenol, pentachlorophenol, 4‐nonylphenol, and 4‐octylphenol in water.     

Matrix Effects on Water Analysis for Alkylphenols Using Solid Phase Extraction Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

Gas chromatography with mass spectrometry is frequently used for the quantification of many classes of substances, including alkylphenols. Alkylphenol polyethoxylates are nonionic surfactants used in a wide variety of industrial and consumer applications. Alkylphenol polyethoxylates can degrade to alkylphenols, which are endocrine disruptors. In analytical validation procedures, the most common parameters studied are the detection and quantification limits, linearity, and recovery; however, the matrix effects are sometimes neglected. Although some investigators have evaluated matrix effects, there is no consensus on how to evaluate them during method validation. In this study, the matrix effects of alkylphenol polyethoxylates (nonylphenol monoethoxylate, nonylphenol diethoxylate, octylphenol monoethoxylate, octylphenol diethoxylate) and alkylphenols (nonylphenol and octylphenol) were studied using solid phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. For alkylphenol polyethoxylates, the matrix effects ranged from 16 to 4692%, whereas for alkylphenols (nonylphenol and octylphenol), the effects were insignificant. Therefore, constructing an analytical curve in the matrix for alkylphenol polyethoxylates is essential.     

Measurement of perchlorate in water by use of an 18O-enriched isotopic standard and ion chromatography with mass spectrometric detection

A novel analytical method has been developed for the determination of 4-tert.-octylphenol (OP) and 4-nonylphenol (NP) in laboratory animal feed samples, which involves stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) followed by liquid desorption (LD) and column-switching liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (CS-LC-MS) with solid-phase extraction (SPE). The method required correction by stable isotopically labeled surrogate standards, deuterium 4-tert.-octylphenol (OP-d) and [2H5] 4-(1-methyl)octylphenol (m-OP-d5). A feed sample was homogenized with methanol by ultrasonication. After centrifugation, the supernatant was subjected to extraction for 120 min at room temperature (25 degrees C) using a stir bar coated with polydimethylsiloxane. After the extraction, the analyte was desorbed from the stir bar by LD using acetonitrile. Then, the liquid sample was analyzed by CS-LC-MS with SPE. The average recoveries from laboratory feed samples spiked with OP and NP at 20 ng g(-1) were 99.5 and 103.8%, respectively, with correction using the added surrogate standards. The limits of quantification were 1 ng g(-1) for OP and 5 ng g(-1) for NP in feed sample. The measurement of OP and NP in commercial laboratory animal feed samples resulted in the detection of sub ng g(-1) NP     

Development and validation of a method for the determination of trace alkylphenols and phthalates in the atmosphere

An analytical method has been developed for the simultaneous extraction and determination of trace tertiary octylphenol (t-OP), technical nonylphenol isomers (NP), nonylphenol monoethoxylate isomers (NP1EO) and seven phthalates in the atmosphere using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). High volume samples were collected using a high-volume pump equipped with a PUF/XAD-2 column for air and glass fiber filter for particles. The detection limits of the method for alkylphenols (APs) and the phthalates ranged from 0.0006 to 0.034 ng m⁻³ in air. The recoveries of t-OP, NP, NP1EO and the phthalates for the entire procedure were satisfactory (>69%). The method was successfully applied to the determination of the analytes in the atmosphere samples collected over land and the ocean. The concentrations of t-OP, NP, NP1EO showed decline trends from land to the open sea, and the phthalates present over land and the North Sea were comparable. It is suggested that the atmosphere is a significant pathway for the transport of alkylphenols and the phthalates in the environment.     

加速溶剂萃取-液相色谱-质谱/质谱法分析动物组织中的壬基酚、辛基酚和双酚A

建立了测定内分泌干扰物质烷基酚、双酚A的液相色谱-电喷雾串联质谱(负离子模式)分析方法,优化了样品前处理方法。以二氯甲烷作提取溶剂,采用加速溶剂萃取法萃取动物组织样品,萃取液用500 mg OASIS氨基固相萃取柱进行浓缩净化。对流动相组分和流动相添加剂对质谱的离子化效率进行了考察,测得3种化合物在高、中、低3个添加水平的回收率为88%~101%,相对标准偏差小于15%;双酚A、壬基酚和辛基酚的方法检出限分别为0.3, 0.05和0.1 μg/kg。对从北京市场上采集的27份动物组织样品进行检测,结果表明壬基酚广泛存在于各种动物源性食品中,检出含量为0.49~55.98 μg/kg,其中鱼肉组织中都检出壬基酚,而且其含量也较高(9.13~55.98 μg/kg)。     

液相色谱-串联质谱法同时测定纺织品和食品包装材料中的壬基酚、辛基酚和双酚A

建立了纺织品和食品包装材料中壬基酚、辛基酚和双酚A的液相色谱-串联质谱分析方法。不同类型的纺织品和食品包装材料样品采用加速溶剂萃取法,以无水乙醇为提取剂,在10.3 MPa和120℃下静态循环提取2次,提取液经Supelclean Envi-Carb石墨化碳黑固相萃取柱净化,收集甲醇-二氯甲烷(1∶4,V/V)洗脱液,采用Waters XBridge C18色谱柱,以甲醇-0.1%氨水溶液为流动相,梯度洗脱分离后,在LC/MS/MS多反应监测模式下进行定性与定量分析。壬基酚、辛基酚和双酚A的方法检出限为0.5μg/kg,在0.5～10μg/kg的3个添加水平范围内,纺织品样品的平均回收率为86.9%～92.5%,相对标准偏差均小于9.1%;食品包装材料样品的平均回收率为87.8%～93.0%,相对标准偏差均小于8.8%。本方法准确、快速、灵敏度高,可用于纺织品和食品包装材料的实际检验。     

Determination of free and ethoxylated alkylphenols in leather with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

An analytical approach was developed to determine nonylphenol (NP), octylphenol (OP), nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEO(n)) and octylphenol ethoxylates (OPEO(n)) in leather samples involving the conversion of NPEO(n) and OPEO(n) into the corresponding NP and OP. The four targets were extracted from samples using ultrasonic-assisted acetonitrile extraction. NP and OP in the extracts were directly isolated with hexane and quantitatively determined with 4-n-nonylphenol as internal standard by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). For NPEO(n) and OPEO(n) in the extracts, they were first converted into NP and OP with aluminum triiodide as cleavage agent, and the yielded NP and OP were determined by GC-MS. The contents of NPEO(n) and OPEO(n) were calculated by normalizing to NPEO(9) and OPEO(9), respectively. This method was properly validated and the real sample tests revealed the pollution significance of leather by NPEO(n) and OPEO(n).     

新型毛细管内固相萃取-气相色谱法检测纺织品中烷基酚类物质

建立了毛细管内固相萃取(SPE)-气相色谱(GC)检测纺织品中壬基酚和辛基酚含量的分析方法。通过比较4种性质不同固相萃取剂的萃取效果,筛选出对烷基酚(APs)类物质萃取效果最佳的固相萃取剂,将其作为填充物质制作毛细管内固相萃取柱,将毛细管内固相萃取法与气相色谱联用进行分析检测。最佳固相萃取剂为Abselut NEXUS,毛细管内固相萃取最佳条件为:1.2 μL甲醇和1.2 μL超纯水活化,1.2 μL甲醇洗脱,上样速率是0.4 μL/min。该法在较低浓度范围内呈现良好的线性相关性,对烷基酚的富集倍数约为100倍,对辛基酚和壬基酚的检出限分别为3.7 μg/L和4.5 μg/L,加标回收率分别为85.6%~98.2%和83.8%~95.7%,结果表明,此法能够简捷、迅速、有效地检测出纺织品中残留的烷基酚类物质。     

固相萃取高效液相色谱质谱法测定海水中烷基酚和烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚

建立了固相萃取-高效液相色谱-电喷雾质谱分析海水中辛基酚、壬基酚、辛基酚聚氧乙烯醚和壬基酚聚氧乙烯醚的方法。海水样品经C18固相萃取柱富集净化后,以甲醇-水为流动相,在Hypersil GOLD色谱柱上分离,电喷雾质谱在选择离子监测模式下分析目标化合物,采用外标法定量。结果表明,4种化合物的平均加标回收率为59.6%～104.4%,相对标准偏差(RSD, n=3)为1.0%～13.5%;仪器检出限为0.08～3 μg/L。将本方法用于大连海岸6个采样点海水中辛基酚、壬基酚、辛基酚聚氧乙烯醚和壬基酚聚氧乙烯醚的检测发现,样品中壬基酚和壬基酚聚氧乙烯醚均有检出,且油港和海港附近海水中的含量较高。     

二氧化硅/聚苯乙烯复合微球的制备及作为固相萃取填料的研究

以分散聚合法制备了二氧化硅/聚苯乙烯单分散复合微球,以红外光谱、透射电镜(TEM)、扫描电镜(SEM)等手段对其进行了表征。以合成的二氧化硅/聚苯乙烯作为固相萃取填料制作固相萃取小柱。通过固相萃取与液相色谱联用,测定了水中邻硝基酚、间硝基酚、对硝基酚和辛基酚、壬基酚,考察了固相萃取条件对固相萃取柱性能的影响,选择了最佳的色谱分离条件。结果表明,自制固相萃取小柱对水中硝基酚、烷基酚的萃取率高,与HPLC联用测定结果重现性好,邻硝基酚、间硝基酚、对硝基酚、辛基酚、壬基酚的最低检出限分别为0.90、0.72、0.62、0.38和0.41μg/L。     

Dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction applied to isolation and concentration of alkylphenols and their short-chained ethoxylates in water samples

Dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME) coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector was applied for the determination of alkylphenols and their short-chained ethoxylates in water samples. Development of DLLME procedure included optimisation of some important parameters such as kind and volume of extracting and dispersing solvents. Under optimised conditions 50 μL of trichloroethylene in 1.5 mL of acetone were rapidly injected into 5 mL of a water sample. After centrifuging the organic phase containing the analytes was taken for evaporation with a gentle nitrogen purge and reconstituted to 50 μL of acetonitrile. The aliquot of this solution was analysed with the use of HPLC. For octylphenol (OP) and octylphenol ethoxylates (OPEOs) linearity was satisfactory in the range 8–1000 μg L⁻¹ and for nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEOs) linearity was in the range from 50 to about 3000 μg L⁻¹. Limit of quantitation was 0.1 μg L⁻¹ for OP and OPEOs and 0.3 μg L⁻¹ for NP and NPEOs. Satisfactory recoveries between 66 and 79% were obtained for environmental samples. The results showed that DLLME is a simple, rapid and sensitive analytical method for the preconcentration of trace amounts of alkylphenols and their ethoxylates in environmental water samples.     

Determination of Alkylphenols Originated from Alkylphenol Ethoxylates by Cleavage Treatment Combined with GC-MS

A chemical cleavage technique was developed for the determination of alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEOs) in environmental samples involving the conversion of APEOs to alkylphenols (APs). Aluminum triiodide (AlI₃) and trimethylsilyl iodide were selected as cleavage reagents and the former was found to be highly reactive and suitable. With AlI₃ as cleavage reagent, nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEOs) and octylphenol ethoxylates (OPEOs) were equivalently converted to the corresponding origins—nonylphenol (NP) and octylphenol (OP), which were detected by gas chromatography—mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The cleavage process was completed under refluxing condition. Water and methanol influenced the cleavage reaction significantly and should be removed prior to the cleavage reaction. The analytical approach was applied for the estimation of APEOs contents in wastewater by normalizing to APs and presented satisfactory recovery and reproducibility. This cleavage technique provides a common and reliable means to assess the environmental significance of samples contaminated by APEOs based on the presence of APs.     

Utilisation of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for determination of alkylphenols in various environmental matrices. Comparison with LC-MS/MS method

Among the wide range of substances discharged continuously in the environment, alkylphenols became a major focus of environmental research in the last decades, as it was found that they possess endocrine disrupting properties. Knowledge about the occurrence and levels of alkylphenols in environment is critical for the risk assessment of these compounds on both ecosystem and human health. However, the analysis of traces of alkylphenols in environmental matrices is a very difficult task, and the suitable methods involve generally an extraction followed by an extensive sample clean-up before detection, steps often time-consuming and costly.In order to reduce the analysis time, obtain a high throughput of analysis and thus improve work efficiency, the objective of the present study is to investigate the use of immunochemical technique (ELISA) for the determination of nonylphenol and octylphenol in soils and various kinds of water. To our knowledge, this is the first time that the determination of alkylphenols in soil using immunoassay technique is described. A methodology is developed, based on the combination of a single preparation step and the use of a simply ELISA kit. The performances of the method are compared with LC-MS/MS, considered as reference. The developed procedure offers the sensitivity and selectivity necessary for the detection of the target alkylphenols in the ng/g or ng/L range, and is successfully applied to the analysis of several samples. Results indicate that alkylphenols are quantified with concentrations in the same order than LC-MS/MS, meaning that ELISA may be useful not only in screening the samples and get a positive/negative response, but also it allows a good approximation of the concentrations.     

皮革及纺织品中烷基酚与烷基酚聚氧乙烯醚的液相色谱-质谱测定

建立了液相色谱-质谱法测定皮革及纺织品中辛基酚(OP)、壬基酚(NP)、辛基酚聚氧乙烯醚(OPEO)及壬基酚聚氧乙烯醚(NPEO)的分析方法。样品经超声波振荡萃取,C18反相色谱柱进行分离,甲醇-水为流动相,离子源为ESI。OP和NP采用负离子模式,定量离子分别为m/z205、219;OPEO和NPEO采用正离子模式,定量离子分别为m/z229+44nEO和m/z243+44nEO(nEO=3~16)。在优化实验条件下,方法的定量下限为0.25~2.5 mg/kg,样品加标回收率为92%~107%,相对标准偏差为5.3%~9.5%(50 mg/kg,n=6)。方法简单、快速、灵敏度高,可满足欧盟等地区对皮革及纺织品中OP、NP、OPEO、NPEO的测定要求。