Evaluation of solid-phase micro-extraction coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for the headspace analysis of volatile compounds in cocoa products

The aroma profile of cocoa products was investigated by headspace solid-phase micro-extraction (HS-SPME) combined with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). SPME fibers coated with 100 μm polydimethylsiloxane coating (PDMS), 65 μm polydimethylsiloxane/divinylbenzene coating (PDMS-DVB), 75 μm carboxen/polydimethylsiloxane coating (CAR-PDMS) and 50/30 μm divinylbenzene/carboxen on polydimethylsiloxane on a StableFlex fiber (DVB/CAR-PDMS) were evaluated. Several extraction times and temperature conditions were also tested to achieve optimum recovery. Suspensions of the samples in distilled water or in brine (25% NaCl in distilled water) were investigated to examine their effect on the composition of the headspace. The SPME fiber coated with 50/30 μm DVB/CAR-PDMS afforded the highest extraction efficiency, particularly when the samples were extracted at 60 °C for 15 min under dry conditions with toluene as an internal standard. Forty-five compounds were extracted and tentatively identified, most of which have previously been reported as odor-active compounds. The method developed allows sensitive and representative analysis of cocoa products with high reproducibility. Further research is ongoing to study chocolate making processes using this method for the quantitative analysis of volatile compounds contributing to the flavor/odor profile.     

Multiresidue determination of pesticides in juice by solid-phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A multiresidue method based on solid-phase extraction was developed for the simultaneous determination of 50 pesticides in commercial juices. The extraction procedure was carried out in C₁₈ columns preconditioned with acetonitrile and water. The subsequent elution of pesticides was performed with a mixture of hexane-ethyl acetate (1:1, v/v) prior to the determination by gas chromatography with electron impact mass spectrometric detection in the selected ion monitoring mode (GC-MS-SIM), using one target and two qualifier ions. Standards were prepared spiking blank juice samples to counteract the observed matrix effect. Average recoveries for all the pesticides studied were higher than 91% with relative standard deviations lower than 9% in the concentration range of 0.02-0.1 μg/mL and the detection limits achieved ranged from 0.1 to 4.6 μg/L. The proposed method was applied to the analysis of these compounds in commercial juices and diazinon, ethion and procymidone were the pesticides encountered, although the levels found were very low.     

Determination of PASHs by various analytical techniques based on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry: application to a biodesulfurization process

Polycyclic aromatic sulphur heterocyclic (PASH) compounds, such as dibenzothiophene (DBT) and alkylated derivatives are used as model compounds in biodesulfurization processes. The development of these processes is focused on the reduction of the concentration of sulphur in gasoline and gas–oil [D.J. Monticello, Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 11 (2000) 540], in order to meet European Union and United States directives.

The evaluation of biodesulfurization processes requires the development of adequate analytical techniques, allowing the identification of any transformation products generated. The identification of intermediates and final products permits the evaluation of the degradation process.

In this work, seven sulfurated compounds and one non-sulfurated compound have been selected to develop an extraction method and to compare the sensitivity and identification capabilities of three different gas chromatography ionization modes. The selected compounds are: dibenzothiophene (DBT), 4-methyl-dibenzothiophene (4-m-DBT), 4,6-dimethyl-dibenzothiophene (4,6-dm-DBT) and 4,6 diethyl-dibenzothiophene (4,6 de-DBT), all of which can be used as model compounds in biodesulfurization processes; as well as dibenzothiophene sulfoxide (DBTO₂), dibenzothiophene sulfone (DBTO) and 2-(2-hydroxybiphenyl)-benzenesulfinate (HBPS), which are intermediate products in biodesulfurization processes of DBT [ A. Alcon, V.E. Santos, A.B. Martín, P. Yustos, F. García-Ochoa, Biochem. Eng. J. 26 (2005) 168]. Furthermore, a non-sulfurated compound, 2-hydroxybiphenyl (2-HBP), has also been selected as it is the final product in the biodesulfurization process of DBT [A. Alcon, V.E. Santos, A.B. Martín, P. Yustos, F. García-Ochoa. Biochem. Eng. J. 26 (2005) 168].

Since, typically, biodesulfurization reactions take place in a biphasic medium, two extraction methods have been developed: a liquid–liquid extraction method for the watery phase and a solid phase extraction method for the organic phase. Recoveries of the selected compound in both media were studied. They were in the range of 80–100% for the watery and in the range of 40–60% for the organic phase, respectively.

Gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC–MS) has been employed for the identification of these selected compounds. Three different ionization modes were applied: conventional electron impact (EI); positive chemical ionization (PCI), using methane as the reagent gas; and a recently developed ionization mode known as hybrid chemical ionization (HCI), using perfluorotri-n-butylamine as the reagent gas. Limits of detection and identification capabilities have been compared between the three analytical techniques.

The sensitivity of the three analytical techniques was studied and LOD between 0.05 and 1, between 0.09 and 2 and between 0.001 and 0.043 were achieved for PCI, EI and HCI, respectively.

The developed method was applied in samples from a biodesulfurization process. The biodesulfurization reactions were conducted in resting cell operation mode, using Erlenmeyer flasks or an agitated tank bioreactor. The microorganism employed was Pseudomonas putida CECT 5279. The reaction was performed under controlled air flow, stirring and temperature conditions.     

Determination of multiclass pesticide residues in apple juice by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with large-volume injection

This study presents two GC-MS SIM methods, in combination with large-volume injection programmed-temperature vaporization (LVI-PTV) injection, for the determination of 141 pesticide residues in apple juice. The sample was extracted with ACN, and coextractives were removed with primary/secondary amine sorbent. ACN extract (20 microL) was injected into a PTV injection port in solvent vent mode, and the pesticides were determined by GC-MS using retention time locking software. Deuterium-labeled pesticides (surrogate standards) were used for analytical quality control. In the validation experiments, pesticides recoveries were found to be 70-121% with RSDs of 4.6-21% (n = 6).     

Simultaneous determination of quinolone antibacterials in bovine milk by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

A new liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method has been developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of eight quinolone antibacterials for veterinary use in processed bovine milk samples. The quinolones studied included marbofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, danofloxacin, enrofloxacin, sarafloxacin, difloxacin, oxolinic acid and flumequine. Also, a new sample-treatment procedure was used for extraction and preconcentration of these compounds. It involved defatting by centrifugation, protein precipitation by adding a mixture of glacial acetic acid-acetonitrile and removing acetonitrile with dichloromethane; finally, the acidified aqueous layer was evaporated to dryness in a speed vac system, resuspended in the mobile phase and filtered prior to LC injection. The mobile phase was composed of a formic acid aqueous solution 0.1% (v/v) and acetonitrile, with an initial composition of water-acetonitrile 95: 5 (v/v) and using linear gradient elution. Norfloxacin was used as internal standard. The limits of quantification found (2-7 ng g(-1)) were in all cases lower than the maximum residue limits tolerated by the European Union for these compounds in milk.     

Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method for the determination of venlafaxine in human plasma and application to a pharmacokinetic study

A sensitive and selective liquid chromatographic-mass spectrometric (LC-MS) method for the determination of venlafaxine in human plasma has been developed. Samples were prepared using liquid-liquid extraction and analyzed on a C(18) column interfaced with a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. Positive electrospray ionization was employed as the ionization source. The mobile phase was methanol-water containing 10 mmol/L ammonium acetate, pH 7.9 adjusted with aqueous ammonia (80:20, v/v) at the flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. The analyte and internal standard clozapine were both detected by use of selected ion monitoring mode. The method was linear in the concentration range of 1.0-200.0 ng/mL. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 1.0 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day relative standard deviation across three validation runs over the entire concentration range was less than 10.1%. The accuracy determined at three concentrations (5.0, 50.0 and 150.0 ng/mL for venlafaxine) was within +/-10.0% in terms of relative error (RE). The method was successfully applied for the evaluation of pharmacokinetic profiles of venlafaxine capsule in 20 healthy volunteers. The results show AUC, T(max), C(max) and T(1/2) between the testing formulation and reference formulation have no significant difference (p > 0.05). Relative bioavailability was 103.4 +/- 14.1%.     

Multiresidue determination of 114 multiclass pesticides in flue‐cured tobacco by solid‐phase extraction coupled with gas chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry

A sensitive and robust multiresidue method for the simultaneous analysis of 114 pesticides in tobacco was developed based on solid‐phase extraction coupled with gas chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry. In this strategy, tobacco samples were extracted with acetonitrile and cleaned up with a multilayer solid‐phase extraction cartridge Cleanert TPT using acetonitrile/toluene (3:1) as the elution solvent. Two internal standards of different polarity were used to meet simultaneous pesticides quantification demands in the tobacco matrix. Satisfactory linearity in the range of 10–500 ng/mL was obtained for all 114 pesticides with linear regression coefficients higher than 0.994. The limit of detection and limit of quantification values were 0.02–5.27 and 0.06–17.6 ng/g, respectively. For most of the pesticides, acceptable recoveries in the range of 70–120% and repeatabilities (relative standard deviation) of <11% were achieved at spiking levels of 20, 100, and 400 ng/g. Compared with the reported multiresidue analytical method, the proposed method provided a cleaner test solution with smaller amounts of pigments, fatty acids as well as other undesirable interferences. The development and validation of the high sensitivity, high selectivity, easy automation, and high‐throughput analytical method meant that it could be successfully used for the determination of pesticides in tobacco samples.     

Direct determination of melamine in dairy products by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry with coupled column separation

A coupled capillary column system was developed for the qualitative and quantitative determination of melamine with isotope internal standard in dairy products by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) without derivatization. A 30 m of DB-5ms ((5%-phenyl)-methylpolysiloxane, 0.25 mm i.d., 0.25 μm df) coupled with a 1.5 m of Innowax (polyethylene glycol, 0.32 mm i.d., 0.25 μm df) by a quartz capillary column connector was introduced as separation column. Three advantages were discussed for the coupled system. The sample was fortified with a ring-labeled ¹³C₃¹⁵N₃-melamine as an isotope internal standard and extracted by 1% of trichloroacetic acid aqueous solution. 2.2% of lead acetate solution was then added to deposit protein in the sample matrix. After purification by cation exchange cartridge, the sample solution was directly injected and detected by GC/MS. A six-point calibration curve ranging from 0.05 to 2 mg kg⁻¹ of melamine in sample was used to establish instrument response. The recovery was 93.9-102% with relative standard deviation from 3.1 to 8.7% when isotope internal standard used. The calculated method detection limit was 0.01 mg kg⁻¹.     

Simultaneous determination of 11 related impurities in propofol by gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry coupled with pulsed splitless injection technique

A variety of related impurities, including starting materials, process impurities, and degradation products, can be detected in propofol. In this article, a sensitive and selective GC‐MS/MS method using pulsed splitless injection technique for the determination of 11 main related impurities in propofol in one chromatogram is investigated. This method is extensively validated for its linearity, recovery, precision, LOD, and LOQ, and is able to detect trace‐level related impurities (LOD = 0.2–5.6 μg/g) in propofol bulk drug. Stressed tests proposed that oxidative degradation, photolytic degradation, and heat are the main causes for the formation of degradation products in propofol.     

固相萃取-气相色谱法测定合成气制烯烃产物中的含氧化合物

采用C18固相萃取技术对合成气制烯烃(SGTO)的产物进行预处理,将产物分离为含氧化合物与烃类,采用气相色谱-质谱法(GC-MS)考察分离效果并鉴定产物中的含氧化合物,使用氢焰离子化检测(FID)定量实际样品中的含氧化合物,使用其正构2-酮、正构醇的响应因子作为同碳数酮、醇的FID响应因子。优化C18小柱洗脱条件,使用标准样品比较预处理前后的方法回收率。醇类标准品回收率为88%~98%,酮类标准品回收率为64%~87%。在197~4785 mg/L范围内,标准品具有较好的线性关系,相关系数均大于0.99。定性并定量测定了SGTO产物中的67种含氧化合物,发现正构醇、正构2-酮为SGTO产物中的主要含氧化合物,同时存在少量其他异构体。该方法操作简单、快速、样品需求量小,并能够在10 min内完成样品的预处理。分析结果为SGTO工艺催化剂、动力学深入研究提供了必要的基础数据。     

Determination of cyclic and linear siloxanes in soil samples by ultrasonic-assisted extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A rapid method, based on sonication-assisted extraction in small columns (SAESC) and subsequent quantification and identification by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), was developed for the determination of cyclic and linear siloxanes in soil. In the experiments with spiked samples (10-50 ng g(-1)), the recovery of cyclic and linear siloxanes ranged from 87.7 to 108.0% and from 84.9 to 107.6%, respectively. The validated method was used to determine the levels of these compounds in various types of soil samples collected from different locations in Spain. The cyclic siloxanes, decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) and dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6) were detected in all the soil samples analyzed at concentrations from 9.2 to 56.9 ng g(-1) for D5 and from 5.8 to 27.1 ng g(-1) for D6 in agricultural soils and from 22 to 184 ng g(-1) for D5 and from 28 to 483 ng g(-1) for D6 in industrial soils. The total linear siloxanes concentrations (L5-L14) (sum of the 10 congeners) ranged from 191 to 292 ng g(-1) in agricultural soils and from 1411 to 8532 ng g(-1) in industrial soils.     

脉冲不分流进样气相色谱-质谱法分析血浆中的10种镇静催眠药

采用脉冲不分流进样技术建立了血浆中10种镇静催眠药(巴比妥、异戊巴比妥、苯巴比妥、奥沙西泮、地西泮、硝西泮、氯硝西泮、艾司唑仑、阿普唑仑、三唑仑)的气相色谱-质谱(GC-MS)快速定性定量分析方法.血浆样品经0.1 mol/L 氢氧化钠溶液碱化后,用乙酸乙酯萃取;萃取液经氮气吹干,用乙酸乙酯溶解后进行GC-MS分析,所...     

Accurate analysis of trace earthy-musty odorants in water by headspace solid phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A simple and sensitive method was developed for the simultaneous separation and determination of trace earthy-musty compounds including geosmin, 2-methylisoborneol, 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine, 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, 2,3,4-trichloroanisole, 2,4,6-trichloroanisole, and 2,3,6-trichloroanisole in water samples. This method combined headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and used naphthalene-d(8) as internal standard. A divinylbenzene/carboxen/polydimethylsiloxane fiber exposing at 90°C for 30 min provided effective sample enrichment in HS-SPME. These compounds were separated by a DB-1701MS capillary column and detected in selected ion monitoring mode within 12 min. The method showed a good linearity from 1 to 100 ng L(-1) and detection limits within (0.25-0.61 ng L(-1)) for all compounds. Using naphthalene-d(8) as the internal standard, the intra-day relative standard deviation (RSD) was within (2.6-3.4%), while the inter-day RSD was (3.5-4.9%). Good recoveries were obtained for tap water (80.5-90.6%), river water (81.5-92.4%), and lake water (83.5-95.2%) spiked at 10 ng L(-1). Compared with other methods using HS-SPME for determination of odor compounds in water samples, this present method had more analytes, better precision, and recovery. This method was successfully applied for analysis of earthy-musty odors in water samples from different sources.     

Determination of cocaine and cocaethylene in urine by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

In order to evaluate recent cocaine exposure or its coingestion with ethanol, a simple and sensitive solid-phase microextraction (SPME) procedure for determination of cocaine and cocaethylene in urine was developed and validated. A polydimethylsiloxane fibre (100 microm) was submersed in the urine sample for 20 min under magnetic stirring after alkalinization with solid buffer (NaHCO(3):K(2)CO(3), 2:1). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to identify and quantify the analytes in selected ion monitoring mode (SIM). The limits of quantification were 5.0 ng/mL for both analytes. Good inter- and intra-assay precision was also observed (coefficient of variation <9%).     

Optimization of ultrasonic-assisted extraction of 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (MCPD) and analysis of its esters from edible oils by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

In this paper, ultrasonic-assisted extraction of 3-chloropropane-1,2-diol and its esters from edible oils was studied with isotope dilution GC-MS. Effects of several experimental parameters, such as types and concentrations of extracting solvent, ratios of liquid to material, extraction temperature, time of ultrasonic treatment on the extraction efficiency of 3-chloropropane-1,2-diol and its esters from edible oils and sample preparation for calibration were compared and optimized. The optimal extraction conditions were suggested as 66 mg oil sample in mixture of 0.5 mL MTBE/ethyl acetate (20% v/v) and 0.5 mL of sulfuric acid/n-propanol (0.3% v/v), being extracted for 30 min at 45°C under ultrasonic irradiation. Good linearity was gained in the range of 0.020-5.000 μg/g with the limit of detection (LOD) of 0.006 μg/g (S/N = 3) and the limit of quantification (LOQ) of 0.020 μg/g (S/N = 10). The recoveries at five spiked concentrations were ranged from 91.9 to 109.3% with RSD less than 9.4%. The method was successfully applied to the determination of 3-chloropropane-1,2-diol and its esters amounts in rapeseed, sesame, peanut, camellia, and soybean oils.     

Quantitative analysis of fatty-acid-based biofuels produced by wild-type and genetically engineered cyanobacteria by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

Simple and rapid quantitative determination of fatty-acid-based biofuels is greatly important for the study of genetic engineering progress for biofuels production by microalgae. Ideal biofuels produced from biological systems should be chemically similar to petroleum, like fatty-acid-based molecules including free fatty acids, fatty acid methyl esters, fatty acid ethyl esters, fatty alcohols and fatty alkanes. This study founded a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method for simultaneous quantification of seven free fatty acids, nine fatty acid methyl esters, five fatty acid ethyl esters, five fatty alcohols and three fatty alkanes produced by wild-type Synechocystis PCC 6803 and its genetically engineered strain. Data obtained from GC-MS analyses were quantified using internal standard peak area comparisons. The linearity, limit of detection (LOD) and precision (RSD) of the method were evaluated. The results demonstrated that fatty-acid-based biofuels can be directly determined by GC-MS without derivation. Therefore, rapid and reliable quantitative analysis of fatty-acid-based biofuels produced by wild-type and genetically engineered cyanobacteria can be achieved using the GC-MS method founded in this work.     

喷气燃料裂解产物中芳烃的全二维气相色谱-质谱分析

采用全二维气相色谱-质谱联用仪(GC×GC-MS),通过优化程序升温和调制周期,建立了喷气燃料裂解产物中芳烃的定性定量分析方法。该方法对多环芳烃(PAH)同分异构体具有良好的分离能力。利用MS检测器谱库检索结果、芳烃标准品及相关的文献报道,对喷气燃料裂解产物中常见的单环芳烃、二环芳烃、三环芳烃及四环芳烃等共27种芳烃进行了准确定性,并利用外标GC×GC-FID法对其进行定量。定量结果表明,芳烃含量均随着裂解产气率的增加而增大,当裂解产气率达到22%时,二环芳烃开始产生,且其含量随着裂解产气率的增加呈指数形式增加。该方法与传统的气相色谱-质谱相比,具有更好的分离及定性能力,可应用于复杂样品的分离及其定性定量分析。     

高温气相色谱和高温气相色谱-质谱法对费托合成蜡的分离和鉴定

费托合成蜡是费托合成反应中的重要产物之一。采用高温气相色谱与冷柱头进样相结合的方式,建立了一种分离分析费托合成蜡的气相色谱方法。该方法无需对费托合成蜡进行预处理,使用氦气为载气,选用更长的高温色谱柱,具有平稳的色谱基线,对费托合成蜡中正构烷烃和其他未知组分有很好的分离效果,能够洗脱费托合成蜡中碳数大于C₉₀的重组分。用高温气相色谱-质谱法对费托合成蜡馏分进行定性分析,其组分有烷烃、烯烃和含氧化合物。该方法对了解费托合成蜡组分的详细信息和费托合成工艺的开发有重要意义。     

Determination of parabens in house dust by pressurised hot water extraction followed by stir bar sorptive extraction and thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

This study describes the development of a new method for determining p-hydroxybenzoic esters (parabens) in house dust. This optimised method was based on the pressurised hot water extraction (PHWE) of house dust, followed by the acetylation of the extracted parabens, stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) with a polydimethylsiloxane stir bar, and finally analysis using thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS). The combination of SBSE and PHWE allows the analytes to be preconcentrated and extracted from the aqueous extract in a single step with minimal manipulation of the sample. Furthermore the in situ acetylation of parabens prior to SBSE improved their extraction efficiency and their GC-MS signal. The method showed recoveries of between 40 and 80%, good linearity, repeatability and reproducibility (<10% RSD, at 100 ng g(-1), n=5), low limits of detection (from 1.0 ng g(-1) for propyl paraben to 2.1 ng g(-1) for methyl paraben) and quantification (from 3.3 ng g(-1) for propyl paraben to 8.5 ng g(-1) for methyl paraben). The proposed method was applied to the analysis of house dust samples. All the target parabens were found in the samples. Methyl and propyl parabens were the most abundant, with concentrations up to 2440 ng g(-1) and 910 ng g(-1), respectively. The high levels of parabens found in the samples confirm the importance of determining organic contaminants in indoor environments.     

Analysis of salicylate and benzophenone-type UV filters in soils and sediments by simultaneous extraction cleanup and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

An analytical method for the determination of UV filters in soil and sediment has been developed and validated considering benzophenones (BP) and salicylates as target analytes. Soil and sediment samples were extracted with ethyl acetate-methanol (90:10, v/v) assisted with sonication, performing a simultaneous clean-up step. Quantification of these compounds was carried out by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) after derivatization of the extracts with N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA). Recoveries from spiked soil samples ranged from 89.8% to 104.4% and they were between 88.4% and 105.3% for spiked sediment samples. The effect of the residence time and soil moisture content on the recovery of these compounds was also studied. The precision, expressed as relative standard deviation, was in all cases below 6.1% and the limits of detection (S/N=3) varied from 0.07 to 0.10 ng g(-1) and from 0.11 to 0.28 ng g(-1) for soils and sediments, respectively. The validated method was applied to the analysis of five benzophenone and two salicylate UV filters in soil and sediment samples collected in different areas of Spain.