Short communication controlling LC-SPE-NMR systems

There are several stages of the LC-SPE-NMR process that should be monitored closely to ensure an efficient isolation and concentration of the target analyte, for instance analyte break-through and compound transfer from the LC-SPE to the NMR probe. In this study, analyte break-through monitoring was performed with a UV detector and a mass spectrometer placed after the SPE unit. Easy break-through was a problem when attempting multiple trapping of various compounds using C18 SPE cartridges with the original commercial system. However, on lowering the flow rate over the SPE system and using SPE cartridges packed with porous carbon, the number of trappings possible increased five-fold. To increase control over the on-line SPE-NMR transfer, a gradient pump-UV system was used to elute compounds trapped on an SPE to an NMR probe. The analyte band was placed in the active volume of the probe by a stop-flow mechanism. The modified LC-SPE system was also coupled with off-line NMR analysis for determination of a degradation product of the insecticide monuron, present in the low ppm range.     

Application of on-line solid-phase extraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to the determination of endocrine disruptors in water samples

We have applied a method based on solid-phase extraction (SPE), on-line coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry through an on-column interface, to determine a group of endocrine-disrupting compounds in water samples. We have optimised the parameters affecting the SPE process and transfer step and used the method to analyse river, coastal and tap waters. In the full-scan acquisition mode, all the compounds were determined by preconcentrating only 15 ml of water sample. Di-n-butyl phthalate, benzylbutyl phthalate, bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and bis(2-ethylhexyl) adipate at concentrations between 0.02 and 0.5 microg l(-1) were determined in some real samples.     

On-line preconcentration strategies for analyzing pesticides in fruits and vegetables by micellar electrokinetic chromatography

Five pesticides (fludioxonil, procymidone, pyriproxyfen, dinoseb and carbendazim) were separated in reversed migration micellar electrokinetic chromatography (RM-MEKC) using 20 mmol l(-1) phosphate buffer at pH 2.3, containing 25 mmol l(-1) sodium dodecylsulfate and 10% methanol. Three on-line concentration strategies, sweeping (SW), normal stacking with reversed migration and a water plug (SRW) and stacking with reverse migration and removal of sample matrix using polarity switching (SRMM), were compared. About 10-, 30- and 50-fold increases in detection sensitivity, compared with standard hydrodynamic injection (5 s at 0.5 psi), were observed with SW, SRW and SRMM, respectively. Limits of detection (LODs) ranged from 0.002 to 0.03 microg ml(-1) using only the on-line preconcentration procedures without any off-line concentration of the extract. A solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedure, for previous isolation and concentration of the analytes, was used in combination with any of the proposed on-line preconcentration strategies, which achieves the determination of pesticides at limits of quantification (LOQs) lower than 0.01 mg kg(-1). The recoveries obtained by SPE in samples spiked at 0.01 mg kg(-1) were between 70 and 100%, with RSDs between 10 and 18% using SRMM. Samples of fruits and vegetables were taken from the market, extracted by the proposed procedure and analyzed with RM-MEKC with the on-line strategies.     

Comparison of various liquid chromatographic methods involving UV and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometric detection for the efficient trace analysis of phenylurea herbicides in various types of water samples

The performance of mass spectrometric (MS) detection and UV detection in combination with reversed-phase liquid chromatography without and with the use of coupled column RPLC (LC-LC) has been compared for the trace analysis of phenylurea herbicides in environmental waters. The selected samples of this comparative study originated from an inter-laboratory study. For both detection modes, a 50 mm x 4.6 mm I.D. column and a 100 mm x 4.6 mm I.D. column packed with 3 microm C18 were used as the first (C-1) and second (C-2) column, respectively. Atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry was performed on a magnetic sector instrument. The LC-LC-MS analysis was carried out on-line by means of direct large volume (11.7 ml) injection (LVI). The performance of both on-line (LVI, 4 ml of sample) and off-line LC-LC-UV (244 nm) analysis was investigated. The latter procedure consisted of a solid-phase extraction (SPE) of 250 ml of water sample on a 500 mg C18 cartridge. The comparative study showed that LC-LC-MS is more selective then LC-LC-UV and, in most cases, more sensitive. The LVI-LC-LC-MS approach combines direct quantification and confirmation of most of the analytes down to a level of 0.01 microg/l in water samples in less then 30 min. As regards LC-LC-UV, the off-line method appeared to be a more viable approach in comparison with the on-line procedure. This method allows the screening of phenylurea's in various types of water samples down to a level of at least 0.05 microg/l. On-line analysis with LVI provided marginal sensitivity (limits of detection of about 0.1 microg/l) and selectivity was sometimes less in case of surface water samples. Both the on-line LVI-LC-LC-MS method and the LC-LC-UV method using off-line SPE were validated by analysing a series of real-life reference samples. These samples were part of an inter-laboratory test and contained residues of herbicides ranging from 0.02 to 0.8 microg/l. Beside good correlation between the methods the data agreed very well with the true values of the samples.     

Isolation and purification of flavonoid glycosides from Trollius ledebouri using high-speed counter-current chromatography by stepwise increasing the flow-rate of the mobile phase

Three flavonoid glycosides including orientin, vitexin, quercetin-3-O-neohesperidoside and one unknown compound were isolated and purified by high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) and semi-preparative HPLC from Trollius ledebouri Reichb., a traditional Chinese medicine. Preparative HSCCC with a two-phase solvent system composed of ethyl acetate-n-butanol-water (2:1:3, v/v/v) was successfully performed by increasing the flow-rate of the mobile phase from 1.5 to 2.5 ml/min after 190 min. Consequently, 95.8 mg orientin, 11.6 mg vitexin, 9.3 mg unknown compound with purities of over 97% and one partially purified peak fraction (contained quercetin-3-O-neohesperidoside at 85.1% purity) were obtained from 500 mg of the crude extract. Then the partially purified fraction was further purified by reversed-phase semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography. The structure identification of all pure fractions was carried out by UV, MS, 1H NMR and 13C NMR.     

Dialysis-solid-phase extraction combined on-line with non-aqueous capillary electrophoresis for improved detectability of tricyclic antidepressants in biological samples

Dialysis-solid-phase extraction (SPE) sample pretreatment is combined on-line with non-aqueous capillary electrophoresis for the determination of tricyclic antidepressants in urine and serum. After clean-up and enrichment, the water is removed from the sample matrix and the analytes are eluted from the cartridge by means of an organic solvent. Next, the eluate is transported to the capillary and the injection is performed electrokinetically. This injection, which does not suffer from an adverse sample matrix effect because of the SPE step, results in further analyte concentration. The detection limits are in the 0.02-0.1 microg/ml range and the day-to-day repeatabilities are between 2.5 and 9.5%, which is quite satisfactory.     

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).     

Automated trace level determination of glyphosate and aminomethyl phosphonic acid in water by on-line anion-exchange solid-phase extraction followed by cation-exchange liquid chromatography and post-column derivatization.

An automated method based on the on-line coupling of anion-exchange solid-phase extraction (SPE) and cation-exchange liquid chromatography followed by post-column derivatization and fluorescence detection has been developed for the trace level determination of glyphosate and its primary conversion product aminomethyl phosphonic acid (AMPA) in water. PRP-X100 poly(styrene-divinylbenzene)-trimethylammonium anion-exchange cartridges (20 x 2 mm, 10 microm) were selected for the SPE of glyphosate and AMPA. The ionic compounds present in the samples strongly influenced the extraction of both analytes; however, when an on-line ion-exchange clean-up step was introduced before sample SPE, the problem was largely solved. By processing 100-ml samples detection limits better than 0.02 microg/l for glyphosate and 0.1 microg/l for AMPA were achieved in river water. Both analytes were unstable in solution and the approach of storing samples on the PRP-X100 SPE cartridges was evaluated for a period of 1 month under three different storage conditions (deep freeze, refrigeration and 20 degrees C).     

High-performance liquid-chromatographic determination of rifampicin in plasma and tissues

A HPLC-UV method has been developed for assaying rifampicin in plasma and liver. The assay involved a liquid-liquid extraction procedure with dichloromethane-pentane (1:1). An Ultrabase-C18 column and a simple mobile phase consisting of a water (pH 2.27)-acetonitrile (40:60, v/v) mixture were used. The flow-rate was 1 ml/min and the effluent was monitored at 333 nm. Results from the HPLC analyses showed that the assay method is linear in the ranges 0.1-1 and 1-50 microg/ml for plasma, and 0.6-40 microg/g for liver. Intra- and inter-day R.S.D. were below 15% for all the sample types. Recoveries averaged 83 and 95% for plasma and liver, respectively. The method is being successfully applied to determine rifampicin in plasma and liver samples taken during pharmacokinetic studies in rats.     

Mixed-level orthogonal array design for the optimization of solid-phase extraction of some pesticides from surface water

An orthogonal array design (OAD), OA32(4(1) x 2(28)), was employed as a chemometric method for the optimization of the solid-phase extraction (SPE) of atrazine, diazinon, ametryn and fenthion in surface water. Seven parameters: the type of eluting solvent, type of sorbent, flow-rate of eluting solvent, sample pH, sample volume, elution volume, addition of modifier and flow-rate of water sample were studied and optimized by a mixed-level OAD. The effects of these factors and some two-variable interactions on the recovery of the pesticides were quantitatively evaluated by the analysis of variance and percentage contribution techniques. The final optimized condition was employed for the SPE of selected micro-organic pollutants from Karoun river water, south of Iran. Atrazine and ametryn were tentatively identified and determined at the 0.7 and 0.9 microg l(-1) level, respectively.     

Rapid Structure Determination of Bioactive 4″-Tetrahydrofurfuryl Macrozone Reaction Mixture Components by LC-SPE/Cryo NMR and MS

LC-SPE/cryo NMR and MS methodologies have been developed and employed for a rapid structure determination of 4″-tetrahydrofurfuryl macrozone reaction mixture components. Macrozones, novel conjugates of azithromycin, and thiosemicarbazones have shown very good in vitro antibacterial activities against susceptible and some resistant bacterial strains and are promising agents for further development. The post-column multiple trapping of the chromatographically separated reaction mixture components on the SPE cartridges increased the sensitivity and together with cryogenically cooled NMR probe made it possible to identify and structurally characterize main 4″-tetrahydrofurfuryl macrozone reaction mixture compounds including those present at very low concentration level. This approach has several advantages over a classical off-line procedure, efficiency and low solvent consumption being the two most important ones. All identified components were process-related. It has been demonstrated that two different kinds of compounds with respect to structure were identified, i.e., macrolide-related and thiosemicarbazone-related ones. This methodology can serve as a platform for reliable and effective macrolides reaction components structure profiling, serving as both isolation and identification tools.     

Comparison of solid-phase extraction and micro-solid-phase extraction for liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis of pesticides in water samples

Our recent on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) device for micro-liquid chromatography, known as micro-solid-phase extraction (microSPE), was compared with traditional SPE for the analysis, from aqueous samples, of 4 pesticides belonging to different classes. Two different kinds of adsorbents, C18 and graphitized carbon black, were tested. A 2-stage ion trap mass spectrometer, equipped with homemade microflow electrospray ion (ESI) source, was used. Detection limits with a signal-to-noise ratio of 3:1 for both extraction methods were in the range of 0.1 microg/L for all compounds. However, better recoveries were obtained when microSPE traps were used.     

Isolation of individual capsaicinoids from a mixture and their characterization by (13)C NMR spectrometry

Individual compounds were isolated from a laboratory mixture of capsaicinoids by a multi-stage approach. First, the capsaicinoids were fractionated into capsaicins and non-capsaicins by argentation solid phase extraction (SPE) on a silver-charged propyl sulfonate resin. Second, compounds in each fraction were isolated by semi-preparative liquid chromatography on a C₃₀ phase in aqueous methanol. Third, the individual components of the original mixture were concentrated by reversed phased (C₁₈) SPE. The structure of each purified compound was confirmed by ¹³C NMR spectrometry and spectral comparison to known standards, purchased or synthesized locally. The chemical shifts of 15 capsaicinoid standards were measured on a 600 MHz instrument, and their assignments to particular carbons were made by reference to Distortionless Enhancement by Polarization Transfer (DEPT) NMR experiments and NMR spectral prediction software.     

Lab-on-valve for the automatic determination of the total content and individual profiles of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates in water samples

Methods for the total content and individual determination of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) in water samples based on the use of a lab-on-valve (LOV) module alone or coupled to CE equipment, respectively, have been developed. The total content of LAS has been determined by intrinsic absorption measurements (DA method) and after reaction with a methyl orange-cetylpyridine chloride mixture (MO method) with detection limits (LODs) of 21 ng/L and 15 microg/L, respectively, quantification limits (LOQs) of 70 ng/L, 50 microg/L, and development times of 100 and 124 s, respectively. The method for individual separation-quantification of LAS at very low concentration is based on automatic SPE preconcentration in the LOV module coupled on-line with the CE equipment. The LODs and LOQs thus obtained range between 1-21 and 4-70 ng/L, respectively, with linear dynamic ranges from the LOQ to 10 microg/L. Preconcentration factors of 10,000 and high efficiency to eliminate interferents by SPE enable application of the method to treated effluent, waste, surface and sea waters.     

Cigarette filter as sorbent for on-line coupling of solid-phase extraction to high-performance liquid chromatography for determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in water

An on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) protocol using the cigarette filter as sorbent coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was developed for simultaneous determination of trace naphthalene (NAPH), phenanthrene (PHEN), anthracene (ANT), fluoranthene (FLU), benzo(b)fluoranthene (BbF), benzo(k)fluoranthene (BkF), benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), and benzo(ghi)perylene (BghiP) in water samples. To on-line interface solid-phase extraction to HPLC, a preconcentration column packed with the cigarette filter was used to replace a conventional sample loop on the injector valve of the HPLC for on-line solid-phase extraction. The sample solution was loaded and the analytes were then preconcentrated onto the preconcentration column. The collected analytes were subsequently eluted with a mobile phase of methanol-water (95:5). HPLC with a photodiode array detector was used for their separation and detection. The detection limits (S/N = 3) for preconcentrating 42 mL of sample solution ranged from 0.9 to 58.6 ng L(-1) at a sample throughput of 2 samples h(-1). The enhancement factors were in the range of 409-1710. The developed method was applied to the determination of trace NAPH, PHEN, ANT, FLU, BbF, BkF, BaP and BghiP in local river water samples. The recoveries of PAHs spiked in real water samples ranged from 87 to 115%. The precisions for nine replicate measurements of a standard mixture (NAPH: 4.0 microg L(-1), PHEN: 0.40 microg L(-1), ANT: 0.40 microg L(-1), FLU: 2.0 microg L(-1), BbF: 1.6 microg L(-1), BkF: 2.0 microg L(-1), BaP: 2.0 microg L(-1), BghiP: 1.7 microg L(-1)) were in the range of 1.2-5.1%.     

On-line preconcentration and determination of Zn in natural water samples employing a styrene-divinylbenzene functionalized resin and flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

In this work, flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) was used as a detector for the determination of zinc in natural water samples with a flow-injection system coupled to solid-phase extraction (SPE). In order to promote the on-line preconcentration of zinc from samples a minicolumn packed with 35 mg of a styrene-divinylbenzene resin functionalized with (S)-2-[hydroxy-bis(4-vinylphenyl)methyl]pyrrolidine-1-carboxylic acid ethyl esther was utilized. The system operation was based on Zn(II) ion retention at pH 9.5 +/- 0.5 in such a minicolumn with analyte elution, at the back flush mode, with 1 mol L(-1) HCl directly to the FAAS nebulizer. The influence of the chemical (sample pH, buffer concentration, HCl eluent concentration and effect of the ionic strength) and flow (sample and eluent flow rates and preconcentration time) parameters that could affect the performance of the system were investigated as well as the possible interferents. At the optimum conditions, for 2 min of preconcentration time (9.9 ml of sample volume), the developed methodology presented a detection limit of 1.1 microg L(-1), a RSD of 3.5% at 10 microg L(-1) and an analytical throughput of 24 h(-1). Whereas, for 4 min of the preconcentration time (19.8 ml of sample volume) a detection limit of 0.98 microg L(-1), a RSD of 6.5% at 5 microg L(-1) and a sampling frequency of 13 h(-1) are reported.     

Liquid chromatographic determination of trimethylamine in water

A method for the selective determination of trimethylamine (TMA) in aqueous matrices by liquid chromatography is reported. The proposed procedure is based on the derivatization of the analyte with 9-fluorenylmethyl chloroformate (FMOC) in a precolumn (Hypersil C18, 30 microm, 20 mm x 2.1 mm i.d.) connected on-line to the analytical column (LiChrosphere 100 RP18, 5 microm, 125 mm x 4 mm i.d.). Gradient elution was performed with a mixture of acetonitrile-water-0.05 M borate buffer (pH 9.0). The method has been applied to the direct determination of TMA in water within the 0.25-10.0 microg/ml concentration interval, and can also be adapted to the determination of TMA over the range 0.05-1.0 microg/ml by incorporating a preconcentration stage with C18 solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartridges. Good linearity, reproducibility and accuracy was achieved within the tested concentration intervals. The limits of detection at 262 nm were 50 and 5 ng/ml for the direct method and for the method involving preconcentration, respectively. The proposed conditions allowed the selective determination of TMA in the presence of other primary and secondary short-chain aliphatic amines. The utility of the described procedure has been tested by determining TMA in different water samples.     

在线固相萃取结合液相色谱-线性离子阱多级质谱法同时检测生物样品中7种乌头类生物碱

建立了在线固相萃取(on-line SPE)结合液相色谱-线性离子阱多级质谱(LC-LIT/MSⁿ)同时测定全血、尿液和肝组织样品中7种乌头类生物碱的分析方法,并根据7种乌头类生物碱的多级质谱碎片对裂解规律进行了推测和总结。用乙腈沉淀样品中的蛋白质,于稀释和离心后直接进样。经Waters Oasis^® HLB在线SPE柱富集纯化,以0.1%(v/v)甲酸/乙酸铵溶液-0.1%(v/v)甲酸/甲醇溶液为流动相,以Accucore C18为分析柱进行梯度洗脱;在电喷雾电离(ESI)正离子模式下测定;扫描方式为连续反应监测(CRM)。在考察的质量浓度范围内,7种乌头类生物碱的标准曲线符合二阶方程(权重因子1/x),相关系数为0.9991~0.9999;在全血和尿液中的方法检出限为0.02~0.60 ng/mL,在肝组织中的方法检出限为0.02~0.40 ng/g;加标回收率为91.1%~104.7%,日内精密度和日间精密度分别为0.2%~10.7%、1.0%~13.7%(n=6)。该方法简单准确,灵敏度高,能够满足生物样品中7种乌头类生物碱的快速分析。     

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes as a solid-phase extraction adsorbent for the determination of three barbiturates in pork by ion trap gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC/MS/MS) following microwave assisted derivatization

A new method was developed for the rapid screening and confirmation analysis of barbital, amobarbital and phenobarbital residues in pork by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC/MS/MS) with ion trap MSD. The residual barbiturates in pork were extracted by ultrasonic extraction, cleaned up on a multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) packed solid phase extraction (SPE) cartridge and applied acetone-ethyl acetate (3:7, v/v) mixture as eluting solvent and derivatized with CH3I under microwave irradiation. The methylated barbiturates were separated on a TR-5MS capillary column and detected with an ion trap mass detector. Electron impact ion source (EI) operating MS/MS mode was adopted for identification and external standard method was employed for quantification. One precursor ion m/z 169 was selected for analysis of barbital and amobarbital and m/z 232 was selected for phenobarbital. The product ions were obtained under 1.0 V excitation voltage. Good linearities (linear coefficient R > 0.99) were obtained at the range of 0.5-50 microg kg(-1). Limit of detection (LOD) of barbital was 0.2 microg kg(-1) and that of amobarbital and phenobarbital were both 0.1 microg kg(-1) (S/N > or = 3). Limit of quantification (LOQ) was 0.5 microg kg(-1) for three barbiturates (S/N > or = 10). Satisfying recoveries ranging from 75% to 96% of the three barbiturates spiked in pork were obtained, with relative standard deviations (R.S.D.) in the range of 2.1-7.8%.