Optimisation and validation of an automated solid phase extraction technique coupled on-line to enzyme-based biosensor detection for the determination of phenolic compounds in surface water samples

Summary A fully integrated screening system for phenolic compounds was developed incorporating on-line solid phase extraction, fractionation and biosensor detection. Two different types of biosensors, solid graphite and carbon paste electrodes incorporating the enzyme tyrosinase, were compared and used in the screening system. Interfacing of the solid phase extraction and fractionation with the biosensor detection was given special attention since the biosensors were not compatible with the organic modifier used for desorption of phenols from the solid phase extraction step. The system was validated with conventional analytical techniques. Surface water samples from the Ebro river were spiked with 1,10, and 25 μg L⁻¹ of catechol, phenol,p-cresol, respectively. Three out of seven samples were spiked and the correct samples were identified, containing phenols equivalent to the spiked concentrations.     

Improvement of on-line solid-phase extraction for determining phenolic compounds in water

Summary Modifying the most common design for the on-line coupling of a precolumn to reversed phase LC with diode array detection has resulted in reduction of the broadening of the peaks which results when the compounds of interest are strongly retained by a highly hydrophobic sorbent. The modification consists of the desorption of the analytes trapped on the precolumn solely by the organic solvent used to modify the solvent strength of the mobile phase. Results obtained using this design were compared with those obtained with the conventional design, with C₁₈ and PLRP-S precolumns. The performance of the system was also tested with a highly cross-linked styrene-divinylbenzene copolymer (ENVI-chrom P) precolumn for the determination of phenolic compounds in real samples. The advantages and disadvantages are discussed. Ion-pair solid phase extraction is used in order to increase the breakthrough volumes of more polar compounds, mainly phenol. The use of the new design enables phenolic compounds to be determined at the low μg L⁻¹ level with limits of detection ranging between 0.1 and 2 μg L⁻¹ in tap water when a 10 mL sample was analyzed.     

Liquid chromatographic determination of nitroaromatics in water following solid phase extraction,pre-column reduction and derivatization

Summary A selective and sensitive method for determination of nitroaromatics is described. The analytes were reduced to corresponding primary amines with iron powder and then derivatized with fluram in citrate buffer to form pyrrolinones. The highly fluorescent pyrrolinones were isolated and preconcentrated by octadecylsilane solid phase extraction cartridge followed by reversed-phase, high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis. Detection was at 395–495 nm. Various aspects such as the reduction process, derivatization, solid phase extraction and chromatographic separation were optimized. Analysis time was relatively short due to a special design for successive reduction and preconcentration. Limits of detection for 3-nitrophenol, nitrobenzene, 4 and 2-nitrotoluene were less than 60, 12, 60 and 280 ng L^–1 respectively.     

The development and validation of a solid phase extraction/HPLC method for the determination of aflatoxins in groundnut meal

Summary The efficiency of an analytical method for the determination of aflatoxins in groundnut meal has been statistically examined. The procedure consists of a phenyl bonded phase (PH) clean-up of an acetone: water (8515) extract followed by HPLC quantification. Average recoveries from spiked groundnut meal extracts were calculated to be 101.3% and 101.8%, with limits of detection of 7.4 and 2.62 g/kg for aflatoxins-B1 and-B2 respectively. Higher recoveries of aflatoxin-B1 from naturally contaminated samples were recorded using the proposed procedure than those recorded using the official AOAC (CB) method although the precisions of the two methods were not found to differ at the 5% significance level. Similar recoveries of aflatoxin-B2 were recorded for both methods but the proposed procedure was found to be more precise. The proposed PH-HPLC method was far less time consuming and more economical on solvents than the CB procedure.     

用快速分离柱高效液相色谱法测定烟草中的几种酚

研究了用快速分离柱高效液相色谱法测定烟草样品中的苯酚、苯二酚和甲基苯酚. 烟草样品中的酚经水蒸汽蒸馏分离后用Waters Sep-Pak-C18固相萃取小柱富集, 以ZORBAX Stable Bound (4.6 mm i.d.×20 mm, 1.8 μm) 快速分离柱为固定相, 0.05 mol/L KH2PO4缓冲溶液-甲醇梯度为流动相, 几种主要酚在2.0 min 内可达到基线分离;该方法的相对标准偏差为2.1%～3.6%, 标准加入的回收率为88%～97%, 已用于几种烟草样品测定.     

An integrated coupled column liquid chromatography system for the determination of leukotriene metabolites in biological samples

Summary A fully integrated chromatographic system was developed for the determination of leukotrienes in biological samples using photodiode-array detection (PDAD), which eliminates time consuming manual sample handling steps. A special solid phase extraction, (SPE) methodology for leucotriene metabolite stability was developed which increased the recoveries and eliminates the contamination risk of biological samples. The inherent instability (autooxidation) of many of the leukotriene mediators, and the adsorption effects onto exposed surfaces in vials and in the chromatographic system were found to be very important parameters to control in order to circumvent high loss of sample analytes. By binding the cell supernatants to the functionalities of the SPE support stabilised these mediators. Cell culture samples were eluted through a disposable C₁₈ SPE column. The SPE columns were allowed to thaw and deposited in an automated sample handling unit (ASPEC XL). Desorption of the analytes was followed by a second on-line SPE step, to eliminate remaining interfering matrix compounds. Typical recoveries when stored at −70°C were in-between 55–97% except for (LTE₄) which was found to be around 40% after 72 days of storage. Seven reversed-phase packings were studied. Selectivity factors, as well as the separation efficiencies, were found to differ for the various C₁₈ bonded silica stationary phases. This integrated on-line column liquid chromatographic system was applied to the determination of leukotriene B₄, leukotriene C₄, leukotriene D₄, leukotriene and E₄ in human cell extracts using prostaglandin B₂ as the internal standard. More than 1500 biological samples were analysed. Some validation data are presented for unattended operations.     

Trace enrichment and HPLC analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in environmental samples,using solid phase extraction in connection with UV/VIS diode-array and fluorescence detection

Summary Both the separation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH's) on tailor made HPLC phases, and their chromatographic enrichment and quantitative determination are of great interest. Because of the generally low concentrations of PAH's in the environment, and the low limiting values in German legislation for drinking water, methods for selective enrichment and sensitive detection are indispensable. On account of their relatively high amounts in soil, the determination of PAH's is valuable for the assessment of the potential danger to ground water by waste materials. These requirements can be fulfilled by used of solid phase extraction on enrichment columns, and fluorescence or UV/VIS diode array detection. For the detection of PAH's in the picogram range, the wavelengths for excitation and emission were time programmed over the chromatogram. With this feature, it is possible to detect all the individual compounds at the highest sensitivity, over the entire analysis.     

Flow injection on-line displacement/solid phase extraction system coupled with flame atomic absorption spectrometry for selective trace silver determination in water samples

A novel flow injection (FI) on-line displacement solid phase extraction preconcentration and/or separation method coupled with FAAS in order to minimize interference from other metals was developed for trace silver determination. The proposed method involved the on-line formation and subsequently pre-sorption of lead diethyldithiocarbamate (Pb-DDTC) into a column packed with PTFE-turnings. The preconcentration and/or separation of the Ag(I) took place through a displacement reaction between Ag(I) and Pb(II) of the pre-sorbed Pb-DDTC. Finally, the retained analyte was eluted with isobutyl methyl ketone (IBMK) and delivered directly to nebulizer for measuring. Interference from co-existing ions with lower DDTC complex stability in comparison with Pb-DDTC, was eliminated without need for any masking reagent. With 120 s of preconcentration time at a sample flow rate of 7.6 mL min−1, an enhancement factor of 110 and a detection limit (3 s) of 0.2 μg L−1 were obtained. The precision (RSD, n = 10) was 3.1% at the 10 μg L−1 level. The developed method was successfully applied to trace silver determination in a variety of environmental water samples and certified reference material.     

Liquid chromatography of phenolic compounds in natural water using on-line trace enrichment

Summary Two packing materials, C18 and PLRP-S, are studied for on-line trace enrichment of phenolic compounds in water. Various precolumns of different internal diameter are also tested and the addition of an ion-pair reagent to increase retention and thus, breakthrough volumes of phenolic compounds, is studied. Best results are obtained when a PLRP-S precolumn is coupled on-line with a C18 analytical column and DAD detector. Addition of TBA considerably increases breakthrough volumes. In contrast, when a C18 precolumn is used, breakthrough volumes are lower and it is impossible to determine TCP and PCP, under the experimental conditions used, because of interference of other nonpolar compounds in the samples. The performance of the system is evaluated with river and tap water and the preconcentration of 10 ml of sample in a PLRP-S precolumn involves a linear range between 1 g 1^–1 and 20 l^–1 and limits of determination between 0.5 g l^–1 and 1 g l^–1 are obtained.     

Simultaneous determination of cyanobacterial hepato-and neurotoxins in water samples by ion-pair supported enrichment and HPLC-ESI-MS-MS

Summary Cyanobacterial neurotoxins, such as anatoxin-a and saxitoxin, as well as hepatotoxins including microcystins and nodularin were simultaneously determined in water samples by ion-pair supported, solid phase extraction (SPE) and reversed-phase liquid chromatography coupled to UV and tandem mass spectrometry (RP-LC-UV; MS-MS). With quantification limits in water samples of approximately 50 ng L⁻¹ for the microcystins (MC-LR,-YR,-RR,-LA), nodularin, and anatoxin-a and 630 ng L⁻¹ for saxitoxin the method is well suited for surveillance of the proposed WHO guidelines for cyanobacterial toxins. MS detection permits, unlike the commonly used UV detection, unambiguous identification and accurate quantification of cyanobacterial toxins even in highly matrix-polluted, water samples.     

Using on-line solid phase extraction for flow-injection spectrophotometric determination of salbutamol

In the proposed procedure, the determination of salbutamol with Folin-Ciocalteau reagent (FC) using a flow injection analysis technique (FIA) with spectrophotometric detection at 750 nm is described. The lab-made FIA system consisted of a peristaltic pump Gilson Minipulse 3 equipped with Tygon tubes, double 6-port external Vici Valco sample injector and S 2000/SAD500 fiber optic spectrophotometer. It was controlled by a PC with use of originally compiled LabVIEW^®—supported software containing the mathematical library with various statistical functions for off-line data evaluation. Concentration, volume of reagents and flow rate were optimised by a simplex method. The proposed system was used for the direct determination of salbutamol sulphate in the tablets and the human urine without preliminary pre-treatment of the sample. The negative effect of interfering substances (excipients of the tablets and matrix of the urine) is overcome by a solid phase extraction (SPE), when salbutamol is adsorbed on the solid phase in the microcolumn, which is integrated directly into the flow system. Pre-treatment of the sample takes place directly in the flowing stream. The sample throughput without carryover of on-line SPE was 60-80 samples per hour. With the SPE column (Baker—carboxylic acid), salbutamol was determined in the linear range from 1 to 15 μg ml⁻¹ (R.S.D.=1.2%), with detection limit (3σ) 0.1 μg ml⁻¹ and a frequency of 40-60 samples per hour in the water solutions. The salbutamol was determined in the linear range from 2 to 20 μg ml⁻¹ (R.S.D.=1.7%), with detection limit (3σ) 1 μg ml⁻¹ and a frequency of 30 samples per hour in the samples of the human urine.     

Molecularly imprinted polymers for on-line preconcentration by solid phase extraction of pirimicarb in water samples

The synthesis and performance of a molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) as a selective solid phase extraction sorbent for the preconcentration of the carbamate pirimicarb from water samples is described. The MIP was prepared using pirimicarb as the template, methacrylic acid as the functional monomer and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as the cross-linking monomer, and using chloroform as the solvent. The detection of pirimicarb was carried out by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) at a hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE) in 0.1 mol l⁻¹ HCl. Solvents of different polarities were checked for the polymer synthesis, and different experimental variables (sample pH, selection of the eluent used, eluent volume, analyte and eluent flow rates and sample volume) associated with the rebinding/extraction process were optimised. For a 25 ml sample, the process took about 13 min and resulted in a nominal enrichment factor of 50 (eluent MeOH:H₂O:HAc, 7:2:1; 0.5 ml) for pirimicarb. A limit of detection of 4.1 μg l⁻¹ was obtained, and a good reproducibility of the measurements using different MIP microcolumns was found. Furthermore, the MIP selectivity was evaluated by checking several substances with similar and different molecular structures to that of pirimicarb. As an application, pirimicarb was determined in water samples of diverse origin which were spiked at a concentration level of 71.5 μg l⁻¹.     

Solid phase extraction and direct HPLC separation of bilirubin and its conjugates in plasma

Summary A semi-automatic reversed-phase HPLC system is described for the direct determination of conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin in human plasma. An Advanced Automated Sample Processor (AASP) is used for sample preparation, and for controlling sample injection and elution. The method is highly sensitive, requiring only 10–50 μl of plasma per assay.     

固相萃取-微乳液相色谱法测定环境水体中的3种酚类化合物

建立了固相萃取-微乳液相色谱法同时测定环境水体中的苯酚、双酚A (BPA)、2,4-二氯苯酚3种酚类化合物的检测方法。水样加酸酸化后,经C18固相萃取小柱富集净化,用微乳液相色谱法测定3种目标物的含量。在Inertsil C18色谱柱(150 mm×4.6 mm, 5 μm)上以微乳(3.0%十二烷基硫酸钠(SDS)-6.0%正丁醇-0.8%正庚烷-90.2%(水+0.5%HAc))和乙腈作为流动相进行梯度洗脱,流速1.0 mL/min,检测波长280 nm。结果表明,苯酚、双酚A、2,4-二氯苯酚的检出限(S/N=3)依次为0.74、8.0、8.0 μg/L,线性范围在0.1~10 mg/L范围内,相关系数(r)均大于0.999。将3种酚类化合物定量加到空白水样中,苯酚、双酚A、2,4-二氯苯酚的加标回收率分别为82.7%、87.8%、82.6%,其RSD均小于5%(n=6)。对环境水样的酚类化合物分析也取得了良好的加标回收率,其值均在85.7%~113.2%之间。结果表明,该方法准确可靠、灵敏度高,适用于环境水体中酚类化合物的检测。     

Application of totally automated on-line sample clean up for prostanoid extraction and HPLC separation

Summary The aim of this study has been the evaluation of an automated system for on-line sample preparation using solid phase extraction and HPLC purification for the measurement of prostanoids in urine. We have established the optimum precolumn and column conditions for this analysis. The manual extraction —HPLC procedure furnishes lower recoveries and higher coefficients of variation than those obtained by the automated on-line procedure. The automated system has been applied to prostanoid analysis of human urine samples from subjects exposed to lead.     

基于溶胶凝胶技术的在线固相萃取与高效液相色谱联用测定饮用水中的雌激素残留

建立了固相萃取与高效液相色谱在线联用测定水样中3种雌激素(己烯雌酚、己烷雌酚、双烯雌酚)痕量残留的方法。以溶胶凝胶技术合成的聚合物为固相萃取材料,对水样中的雌激素进行萃取富集,考察了样品溶液不同pH、上样流速及洗脱溶剂等条件对合成材料富集效果的影响。结果表明,在优化的条件下,该方法对3种雌激素的检出限(S/N=3)为0.07~0.13 μg/L,样品中的加标回收率为82.31%~99.43%,相对标准偏差(RSD)为1.61%~7.15%。方法简便可靠,适用于饮用水中雌激素的痕量残留检测。     

Microwave assisted micellar extraction coupled with solid phase microextraction for the determination of organochlorine pesticides in soil samples

Microwave assisted micellar extraction (MAME) coupled with solid phase microextraction (SPME) and HPLC-UV determination have been used for the determination of five organochlorine pesticides from agricultural soil samples. A non-ionic surfactant, Polyoxyethlylene 10 Lauryl Ether was used, and the different variables for the optimization of MAME and SPME procedures were studied. This method was applied successfully to the determination of these pesticides in several kinds of agricultural soil samples with different characteristics. Most of the compounds studied can be recovered in good yields with R.S.D. lower than 9% and detection limit ranged between 56-96 ng g⁻¹ for the pesticides studied.     

Preparation and evaluation of hydrophilic C18 monolithic sorbents for enhanced polar compound retention in liquid chromatography and solid phase extraction

Hydrophilic C18 monolithic polymer sorbents were synthesized for use in solid phase extraction (SPE) and in capillary liquid chromatography (LC). The approach involved incorporating both hydrophobic and hydrophilic monomers into a monolithic material, by copolymerization of stearyl methacrylate (SMA), poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (PEGMEMA) and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) in the presence of selected porogens, to produce translucent mesoporous monolithic materials in bulk (SPE) or white macroporous monoliths inside fused silica capillary columns (capillary LC). A capillary column containing one of the hydrophilic C18 monoliths (i.e. poly(SMA-co-PEGMEMA-co-EDMA) with 15% (w/w) PEGMEMA) demonstrated nearly 35% reduction in retention of polycyclic aromatic compounds and greater than 40% increase in retention of phenols compared to a hydrophobic C18 monolithic column. In addition, the hydrophilic monolith demonstrated significantly improved resolution of phenols. Similar monolithic materials prepared in bulk were ground and sieved to obtain 45-65 μm particles with desired rigidity for SPE. To achieve optimum extraction performance for phenols, several parameters, including sample pH and volume, and eluent type and volume, were investigated. Under optimized experimental conditions, the method demonstrated good sensitivity (1.6 ng/mL LOD) and linearity (R(2)>0.97 for 10-200 ng/mL). Again, incorporation of 15% (w/w) PEGMEMA in the monolith increased the extraction efficiency of phenols in water from approximately 20% to 67-92% compared to a hydrophobic C18 monolithic material. Increased wettability of the sorbent by the aqueous sample matrix and the presence of hydrogen-bonding interactions are responsible for the improved retention of polar compounds.     

Determination of chloroethenes in environmental biological samples using gas chromatography coupled with solid phase micro extraction

Summary An analytical method has been developed to determine the chloroethene series, tetrachloroethene (PCE), trichloroethene (TCE),cisdichloroethene (cis-DCE) andtransdichloroethene (trans-DCE) in environmental biotreatment studies using gas chromatography coupled with a solid phase micro extraction (SPME) technique. The volatile chlorinated compounds in aqueous solution can be analyzed directly without solvent extraction, purge and trap, or thermal heating. The calibration curves have demonstrated good linear relationships within 50.0 to 3000.0 g L^–1 concentration range. Detection limits are 18.0, 5.0, 25.0, and 42.0 g L^–1, for PCE, TCE,cis-DCE andtrans-DCE, respectively. Factors which affect the SPME process, such as sample adsorption time, thermal desorption time, and concentration of salt in the matrix, have also been evaluated.     

Immobilized polysiloxanes as stationary phases for high-performance liquid chromatography and solid phase extraction

Polysiloxanes immobilized onto the surfaces of porous silica particles have proven to be good stationary phases for the separation of multiresidues of pesticides and their metabolic/degradation products by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). Similar materials have proven effective for pre-concentration and clean-up procedures using solid phase extraction. The present paper describes the preparation and some applications of several of these packing materials.