Development of molecularly imprinted polymeric nanofibers by electrospinning and applications to pesticide adsorption

Novel polystyrene‐based molecularly imprinted polymer nanofibers were synthesized through the electrospinning technique. The molecularly imprinted polymers were prepared using a non‐covalent approach and atrazine as template. For comparison, nonimprinted polymer nanofibers were also synthesized. The morphology of the synthesized nanofibers was characterized using scanning electron microscopy. The adsorption of pesticides, atrazine, atrazine desisopropyl, atraton, carboxin, linuron, and chlorpyrifos was studied under equilibrium (batch) conditions. To describe the adsorption capability of the synthesized polymers, Langmuir and Freundlich models were used. The Freundlich model provided a better mathematical approximation of the sorption characteristic for polymers nanofibers. To evaluate the adsorption capacity in the presence of interferents experiments on river water samples spiked with a mixture of six pesticides were also performed. The results obtained for the highest concentration levels investigated, show a greater amount of pesticide adsorbed on molecularly imprinted polymers and non‐imprinted polymers compared to those obtained using commercial stationary phases used as reference.     

Magnetic molecularly imprinted composite for the selective solid‐phase extraction of p‐aminosalicylic acid followed by high‐performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection

A new method for the selective extraction of p‐aminosalicylic acid from aqueous and urine samples has been developed using magnetic molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles before determination by high‐performance liquid chromatography. The Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles were first prepared through the chemical coprecipitation of Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ and then coated with a vinyl shell. Subsequently, a layer of molecularly imprinted polymers was grafted onto the vinyl‐modified magnetic nanoparticles by precipitation polymerization. FTIR spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry, and thermogravimetric analysis were applied to characterize the sorbent properties. Moreover, the predominant parameters affecting the magnetic solid phase extraction such as sample pH, sorption and elution times, the amount of sorbent, and composition and volume of eluent were investigated thoroughly. The maximum sorption capacity of the imprinted polymer toward p‐aminosalicylic acid was 70.9 mg/g, which is 4.5 times higher than that of the magnetic nonimprinted polymer. The magnetic molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles were applied for the selective extraction of p‐aminosalicylic acid from aqueous and urine samples and satisfactory results were achieved. The results illustrate that magnetic molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles have a great potential in the extraction of p‐aminosalicylic acid from environmental and biological matrices.     

Extraction of crocin from saffron (Crocus sativus) using molecularly imprinted polymer solid‐phase extraction

A new molecularly imprinted polymer for extraction of crocin from saffron stigmas was prepared using gentiobiose (a glycoside moiety in crocin structure) as a template. Crocin binding to gentiobiose imprinted polymer (Gent‐MIP) was studied in comparison with a blank nonimprinted polymer in aqueous media. Affinity of the Gent‐MIP for the crocin was more than the nonimprinted polymer at all concentrations. In Scatchard analysis, the number of binding sites in each gram of polymer (maximum binding sites) and dissociation constant of crocin to binding sites were 18.4 μmol/g polymer and 11.2 μM, respectively. The Gent‐MIP was then used as the sorbent in an SPE method for isolation and purification of crocin from methanolic extract of saffron stigmas. The recovery of crocin, safranal and picrocrocin was determined in washing and elution steps. The Gent‐MIP had significantly higher affinity for crocin than other compounds and enabled selective extraction of crocin with a high recovery (84%) from a complex mixture. The results demonstrated the possibility of using a part of a big molecule in preparing a molecularly imprinted polymer with a good selectivity for the main structure.     

Miniaturized molecularly imprinted polymer extraction method for the gas chromatographic analysis of flavonoids

In this study, the use of monolithic molecularly imprinted polymers in a micropipette tip format allowing the simple and fast extraction of flavonoids from standard solutions and a black tea sample is demonstrated. The imprinted polymer employed quercetin, methacrylic acid or 4‐vinylpyridine, and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as template, functional monomer, and cross‐linker, respectively. Surface morphologies of the quercetin‐imprinted polymers and the corresponding nonimprinted polymers were characterized by SEM. Extraction of flavonoid standards was performed to evaluate the selectivity and recovery with these imprinted and nonimprinted polymers. Flavonoid compositions in aliquots eluted from the tips were identified using fast GC with flame ionization detection. Maximum specific capacities of 0.2, 5.7, and 16.0 mg/g for catechin, morin, and quercetin, respectively, were obtained with the imprinted polymer prepared with methacrylic acid, with the corresponding recoveries of 99.8, 98.8, and 95.4%, respectively. Efficient extraction by the quercetin‐imprinted polymer of epicatechin, catechin, and quercetin from an apple‐flavored black tea sample was achieved, with GC–MS employed for compound identification for both the tea and extracted samples.     

Synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymer adsorbents for solid‐phase extraction of strobilurin fungicides from agricultural products

Molecularly imprinted polymers for strobilurin fungicides were prepared by precipitation polymerization employing azoxystrobin as template molecular together with methacrylic acid monomer and trimethylolpropane triacrylate cross‐linker. Morphological characterization showed molecularly imprinted polymers were uniform spherical particles with about 0.2 μm in diameter, while the morphologies of nonimprinted polymers were irregular bulk. The equilibrium binding and selective experiments proved that molecularly imprinted polymers possessed a higher affinity toward four fungicides compared to nonimprinted polymers and heterogeneous binding sites were found in the molecularly imprinted polymers. Molecularly imprinted solid‐phase extraction conditions, including sample loading solvents, selective washing, and elution solvents, were carefully optimized. The developed method showed good recoveries (70.0–114.0%) with relative standard deviations in range of 1.0–9.8% (n  =  3) for samples (cucumber and peach) spiked at three different levels (10, 50, and 100 μg/ kg). The detection limit (signal/noise = 3) ranged from 0.01 to 0.08 μg/kg. The results demonstrated good potential use of this convenient and highly efficient method for determining trace strobilurin fungicides in agricultural products.     

An Artificial Estrogen Receptor through Combinatorial Imprinting

Polymeric sorbents targeting endocrine‐disrupting estrogen active compounds (EAC) were prepared by terpolymer imprinting using 17β‐estradiol (E2) as template. From a group of eight functional monomers representing Brønsted acids, bases, hydrogen‐bond donors and acceptors, as well as π‐interacting monomers, a terpolymer library that comprises all possible binary combinations of the functional monomers was prepared. Binding tests revealed that imprinted polymers exhibit a markedly higher affinity for E2 compared to nonimprinted polymers (NIPs) or polymers prepared by using single functional monomers. A combination of methacrylic acid (MAA) and p‐vinylbenzoic acid offered a particularly promising lead polymer, displaying an imprinting factor of 17 versus 2.4 for a benchmark polymer prepared by using only MAA as functional monomer. The saturation capacities ascribed to imprinted sites were four to five times higher for this polymer compared to previously reported imprinted polymers. NMR titrations and molecular dynamics simulations corroborated these results, indicating an orthogonal preference of the two functional monomers with respect to the E2 3‐OH and 17‐OH groups. The optimized polymer exhibited a retentivity for EACs that correlates with their inhibitory effect on the natural receptor. By using the optimized molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) in a model water‐purification system, they were capable of completely removing ppb levels of a small group of EACs from water. This is in contrast to the performance of nonimprinted polymers and well‐established sorbents for water purification (e.g., active carbon), which still contained detectable amounts of the compounds after treatment.     

Synthesis of a nano‐sized chiral imprinted polymer and its use as an (S)‐atenolol carrier in the bulk liquid membrane

In this work, nanosized chiral imprinted polymers containing (S)‐atenolol ((S)‐ATN) selective sites were synthesized by using suspension polymerization in silicon oil. (S)‐ATN, methacrylic acid, and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate were used as enantiomerically pure template, functional monomer, and cross‐linker, respectively. The prepared chiral imprinted polymers were used as the carrier elements in a bulk liquid membrane (BLM). (S)‐ATN transport capability of the chiral imprinted polymers was compared with that of the nonimprinted polymer. It was shown that chiral imprinted polymers could transport (S)‐ATN through the BLM more effectively than (R)‐ATN, whereas no difference in the facilitated transport was observed between (R)‐ATN and (S)‐ATN when using nonimprinted polymer particles as the carrier element in the BLM. A kinetic model was proposed for the transportation of (S)‐ATN through the chiral imprinted polymers based BLM. It was found that the extraction of ATN from the source to the membrane controls the chiral separation process. It was also found that the pH of source and receiving phases as well as the racemic ATN concentration in source phase had very crucial effect on the chiral separation efficiency.     

Carbon nanotube-based ion imprinted polymer as electrochemical sensor and sorbent for Zn(II) ion from paint industry wastewater

A novel technique was presented to embed Zn(II) ion imprinted and nonimprinted polymers using various approaches for its sensing and sorption. Ion imprinted and nonimprinted polymers were fabricated by layering on MWCNTs or by bulk imprinting and characterized. Here Zn(II) ion was template, acrylic acid as monomer and N,N-methylene-bis-acrylamide as crosslinker. The electrochemical performance of electrode modified with imprinted and nonimprinted polymers were scrutinized and optimized with cyclic voltammetry (CV). The limit of detection for Zn(II) ion was found to be 1.32?×?10^?4?µM by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The applicability of the system was checked with paint industry wastewater.     

Synthesis and study of sorption properties of molecularly imprinted polymers for quercetin

Molecularly imprinted polymers for quercetin and the corresponding nonimprinted blank polymers (control polymers) have been synthesized using acrylamide and 2-(dimethylamino)-ethylmethacrylate as functional monomers. It has been shown that the nature of the template, the ratio of the functional monomer to template within the prepolymerization mixture, and the amount of crosslinker, which were varied at the synthesis stage, influenced on the sorption properties of molecularly imprinted polymers for quercetin. Synthesis conditions were optimized by varying the composition of the prepolymerization mixture. The sorption properties of the obtained materials have been studied. The estimation of selectivity of a sorbent with the imprints of quercetin was carried out by the example of structurally related compounds. It has been shown that the acrylamide-based polymer was able to selectively sorb quercetin, the binding sites of the quercetin being mainly of hydrophobic structure.     

Thermosensitive molecularly imprinted poly(1‐vinyl‐2‐pyrrolidone/methyl methacrylate/N‐vinylcaprolactam) for selective extraction of imatinib mesylate in human biological fluid

The efficiency of a molecularly imprinted polymer as a selective packing material for the solid‐phase extraction of imatinib mesylate sorption was investigated. The molecularly imprinted polymer was prepared using N,N′‐methylenebisacrylamide as a cross‐linker agent, N‐vinylcaprolactam as a thermo‐sensitive monomer, 1‐vinyl‐2‐pyrrolidone and methyl methacrylate as functional monomers, azobisisobutyronitrile as an initiator and imatinib mesylate as a template. The drug‐imprinted polymer was identified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, elemental analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. It was found that this polymer can be used for determination of trace levels of imatinib mesylate with a recovery percentage that could reach over 90%. Furthermore, the synthesized molecularly imprinted polymer indicated higher selectivity towards imatinib mesylate than other compounds. From isotherm study, the equilibrium adsorption data of imatinib mesylate by imprinted polymer were analyzed by Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin isotherm models. The developed method was used for determination of imatinib mesylate in human fluid samples by high performance liquid chromatography with excellent results.     

Molecularly imprinted polymer on a SiO2‐coated graphene oxide surface for the fast and selective dispersive solid‐phase extraction of Carbamazepine from biological samples

A surface carbamazepine‐imprinted polymer was grafted and synthesized on the SiO₂/graphene oxide surface. Firstly SiO₂ was coated on synthesized graphene oxide sheet using the sol–gel technique. Prior to polymerization, the vinyl group was incorporated on to the surface of SiO₂/graphene oxide to direct selective polymerization on the surface. Methacrylic acid, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate and ethanol were used as monomer, cross‐linker and porogen, respectively. Nonimprinted polymer was also prepared for comparison. The properties of the molecularly imprinted polymer were characterized using field‐emission scanning electron microscopy and Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy. The surface molecularly imprinted polymer was utilized as an adsorbent of dispersive solid‐phase extraction for separation and preconcentration of carbamazepine. The effects of the different parameters influencing the extraction efficiency, such as sample pH were investigated and optimized. The specificity of the molecular imprinted polymer over the nonimprinted polymer was examined in absence and presence of competitive drugs. The carbamazepine calibration curve showed linearity in the ranges 0.5–500 μg/L. The limits of detection and quantification under the optimized conditions were 0.1 and 0.3 μg/L, respectively. The within‐day and between‐day relative standard deviations (n = 3) were 3.6 and 4.3%, respectively. Furthermore, the relative recoveries for spiked biological samples were above 85%.     

Molecularly Imprinted Polypyrrole for DNA Determination

In this study graphite electrodes modified by a thin DNA‐imprinted polypyrrole layer, which was able to bind specific target‐DNA, are reported. For this aim, electrochemical synthesis of polypyrrole was performed on a pencil graphite electrode by cyclic voltammetry (CV) or by potential pulse sequences (PPS). The modified electrode surface was used for electrochemical determination of target‐DNA by differential pulse voltammetry. According to our best knowledge this is a first report on the application of DNA‐imprinted polymer for the determination of target‐DNA. The results showed that the molecularly imprinted polypyrrole (MIPPy) layer that formed on the carbon electrode surface was sensitive for target‐DNA, while the nonimprinted polypyrrole layer was not sensitive to the same target‐DNA. Comparison of electrodes modified using PPS and CV techniques is presented.     

Molecularly imprinted polymers on the surface of silica microspheres via sol‐gel method for the selective extraction of streptomycin in aqueous samples

Streptomycin‐imprinted silica microspheres were prepared by combining a surface molecular‐imprinting technique with the sol‐gel method. A mixture of tetrahydrofuran, ethanol, and water (6:1:1, v/v/v) was selected as dispersing solvent while 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane and triethoxyphenylsilane acted as functional monomers, and tetraethyl orthosilicate as a cross‐linker. Characterization of the molecularly imprinted polymers was conducted using scanning electron microscope and dynamic binding experiments. As compared to the nonimprinted polymers, the imprinted polymers exhibited a higher degree of saturated adsorption volume up to 26.3 mg/g, and better selectivity even in an aqueous solution with interfering compounds, including dihydrostreptomycin, neomycin, and tetracycline. The adsorption ability and selectivity were observed to be influenced by the mole ratio of 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane and triethoxyphenylsilane. Feasibility of the polymers to be used for actual application was also evaluated with spiked samples, indicating great potential for large‐scale applications. Moreover, the streptomycin‐imprinted polymers can be repeatedly used for 12 cycles without losing original performance, which is beneficial for commercial use.     

Molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction method for the high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of fungicide pyrimethanil in wine

A method for molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) of the fungicide pyrimethanil from wine samples has been investigated. The molecular imprinted polymer was obtained by iniferter-mediated grafting on porous chloromethylated polystyrene beads, using methacrylic acid as the functional monomer and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as the cross-linker. The imprinted beads were evaluated for use as a solid-phase extraction sorbent, in order to develop the extraction protocol in aqueous standards and red wine samples. The optimised extraction protocol resulted in a reliable MISPE method suitable for HPLC analysis (stationary phase: Cromolith Performance C18 column, 100 mm x 4.6 mm; mobile phase: acetonitrile-water (3:2, v/v), flow-rate: 1.00 ml/min; detection 270 nm). It was selective for pyrimethanil and the related pyrimidinic fungicides cyprodinil and mepanipyrim, while the non-pyrimidinic fungicides benalaxyl, chlozolinate, furalaxyl, iprodione, metalaxyl, nuarimol, procymidone and vinclozolin were not extracted. Recoveries performed on a wine matrix spiked with pyrimethanil at three different concentration levels were reproducible and were in good agreement with the recoveries performed on buffer, coming out between 80 and 90% (85+/-7.0% at 0.50 microg/ml, 79+/-1.6% at 2.0 microg/ml and 87+/-5.6% at 20 microg/ml). Preconcentration and quantitative extraction of pyrimethanil from wine samples was shown to be feasible down to 0.1 microg/ml.     

Tailor‐made ion‐imprinted polymer based on functionalized graphene oxide for the preconcentration and determination of trace copper in food samples

A tailor‐made Cu(II) ion‐imprinted polymer based on large‐surface‐area graphene oxide sheets has been synthesized for the preconcentration and determination of trace copper from food samples by solid‐phase extraction. Attributed to the ultrahigh surface area and hydrophilicity of graphene oxide, the Cu(II) ion‐imprinted polymer prepared by the surface ion‐imprinting technique exhibited a high binding capacity and a fast adsorption rate under the optimized experimental conditions. In the static adsorption experiments, the maximum adsorption capacity of Cu(II) ion‐imprinted polymer is 109.38 mg/g at 25°C, which is much higher than that of the nonimprinted polymer (32.12 mg/g). Meanwhile, the adsorption is very rapid and equilibrium is reached after approximately 30 min. The adsorption mechanism is found to follow Langmuir adsorption model and the pseudo‐second‐order adsorption process. The Cu(II) ion‐imprinted polymer was used for extracting and detecting Cu(II) in food samples combined with graphite flame atomic adsorption spectrometry with high recoveries in the range of 97.6–103.3%. The relative standard deviation and limit of detection of the method were evaluated as 1.2% and 0.37 μg/L, respectively. The results showed that the novel absorbent can be utilized as an effective material for the selective enrichment and determination of Cu(II) from food samples.     

High Selective Parathion Voltammetric Sensor Development by Using an Acrylic Based Molecularly Imprinted Polymer‐Carbon Paste Electrode

The design and construction of an extra high selective voltammetric sensor for parathion by using a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) as recognition element was introduced. A parathion selective MIP and a nonimprinted polymer (NIP) were synthesized and then incorporated in the carbon paste electrode. The MIP‐CP electrode showed very high recognition ability in comparison to NIP‐CP. It was shown that electrode washing after parathion extraction, led to enhanced selectivity. Some parameters affecting the sensor response were optimized and then the calibration curve was plotted. A dynamic linear range of 1.7–900 nM was obtained. The detection limit of the sensor was calculated as 0.5 nM. This sensor was used successfully for parathion determination in real samples such as ground water and vegetables.     

Preparation and selective recognition of a novel solid‐phase microextraction fiber combined with molecularly imprinted polymers for the extraction of parabens in soy sample

A prepared molecularly imprinted polymer with ethyl p‐hydroxybenzoate as template molecule was applied for the first time to a homemade solid‐phase microextraction fiber. The molecularly imprinted polymer‐coated solid‐phase microextraction fiber was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Various parameters were investigated, including extraction temperature, extraction time, and desorption time. Under the optimum extraction conditions, the molecularly imprinted polymer‐coated solid‐phase microextraction fiber exhibited higher selectivity with greater extraction capacity toward parabens compared with the nonimprinted polymer‐coated solid‐phase microextraction fiber and commercial fibers. The molecularly imprinted polymer‐coated solid‐phase microextraction fiber was tested using gas chromatography to determine parabens, including methyl p‐hydroxybenzoate, ethyl p‐hydroxybenzoate, and propyl p‐hydroxybenzoate. The linear ranges were 0.01–10 μg/mL with a correlation coefficient above 0.9943. The detection limits (under signal‐to‐noise ratio of 3) were below 0.30 μg/L. The fiber was successfully applied to the simultaneous analysis of three parabens in spiked soy samples with satisfactory recoveries of 95.48, 97.86, and 92.17%, respectively. The relative standard deviations (n=6) were within 2.83–3.91%. The proposed molecularly imprinted polymer‐coated solid‐phase microextraction method is suitable for selective extraction and determination of trace parabens in food samples.     

Molecularly imprinted polymer nanocarriers for recognition and sustained release of diclofenac

In this study, a series of imprinted poly(methacrylic acid‐co‐ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) nanocarriers for diclofenac and corresponding nonimprinted polymer nanocarriers have been synthesized in 4 different types of solvents by precipitation polymerization. The products were characterized by Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and Brunauer‐Emmett‐Teller measurement. Results showed that uniformly sized molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) nanospheres with relatively good porosity could only be obtained in acetonitrile. The effects of solvents on the recognition and release properties of polymer particles were also carefully investigated. The binding experiments indicated that MIPs prepared in acetonitrile displayed much higher binding capacity than other MIPs with a maximum binding capacity of 65.18 mg g⁻¹. The Scatchard analysis showed that synthetic MIPs have special recognition sites for diclofenac, while nonimprinted polymers have not. The Sips model could provide a best fit to the equilibrium data of nanocarriers over whole concentrations. The experimental data of an adsorption kinetic study were well fitted to the pseudo–second‐order kinetic model, indicating the chemisorption mechanism between diclofenac and MIPs in the process of adsorption. The drug release of diclofenac from MIPs could well be described by the Ritger‐Peppas model, suggesting a non‐Fickian diffusion mechanism. In addition, we successfully used MIPs to extract diclofenac at low levels from fetal bovine serum.     

Citrinin selective molecularly imprinted polymers for SPE

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for citrinin (Cit) with 1‐hydroxy‐2‐naphthoic acid (HNA) as mimic template were prepared and the molecularly imprinted SPE method was developed for the detection of Cit in rice with HPLC. The adsorption properties of HNA and Cit on the MIPs and nonimprinted polymers were investigated. It proved that MIPs showed higher selectivity adsorption to HNA and Cit than nonimprinted polymers were. The recoveries of Cit in rice were in the range of 86.7–97.7%. The spiked rice samples and five rice samples in Beijing market were detected using molecularly imprinted SPE method and satisfied results were obtained as discussed in this article.     

Development of molecularly imprinted microspheres for the fast uptake of 4‐cumylphenol from water and soil samples

Molecularly imprinted microspheres containing binding sites for the extraction of 4‐cumylphenol have been prepared for the first time. The imprinted microspheres were synthesized by a precipitation method using 4‐cumylphenol as a template molecule, methacrylic acid as a functional monomer and divinylbenzene‐80 as a cross‐linker for polymer network formation. The formation and the morphology of molecularly imprinted microspheres were well characterized using infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric studies, and scanning electron microscopy. The Brunauer–Emmett–Teller analysis revealed the high surface area of the sorbent indicating formation of molecularly imprinted microspheres. The developed microspheres were employed as a sorbent for the solid‐phase extraction of 4‐cumylphenol and showed fast uptake kinetics. The sorption parameters were optimized to achieve efficient sorption of the template molecule, like pH, quantity of molecularly imprinted microspheres, time required for equilibrium set‐up, sorption kinetics, and adsorption isotherm. A standard method was developed to analyze the sorbed sample quantitatively at 279 nm using high‐performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection. It was validated by determining target analyte from synthetic samples, bottled water, spiked tap water, and soil samples. The prepared material is a selective and robust sorbent with good reusability.