Determination of alkylphenols and linear alkylbenzene sulfonates in sediments applying accelerated solvent extraction (ASE)

A time and solvent saving method (accelerated solvent extraction, ASE) for the extraction of anionic surfactants as linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) and alkylphenols from sediments is presented. The analytes are extracted by methanol at 100° C and 150 atm within 10 min of static and 5 min of dynamic extraction. The presence of methanol and a maximum pressure of 150 atm are essential for the complete extraction of anionic surfactants, whereas the extraction of alkylphenols is independent of both parameters. The extraction of alkylphenolethoxylates yielded only unsatisfactor results. It was demonstrated that the ASE extraction is selective for LAS surfactants, while matrix substances, which are extracted by the methanol extraction and interfere with the target analytes during the HPLC-run, remain in the sample. Thus, a further clean-up procedure of the ASE extract is not necessary.     

Multi-residue method for the analysis of synthetic surfactants and their degradation metabolites in aquatic systems by liquid chromatography-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry

Synthetic surfactants are economically important chemicals, as they are widely used in household cleaning detergents, textiles, paints, polymers and personal care products. In this work we have developed a method capable of the isolation and analysis of the most widely used surfactants (linear alkylbenzene sulfonates, LAS, nonylphenol ethoxylates, NPEO, and alcohol ethoxylates, AEO) and their main degradation products (sulfophenyl carboxylic acids, SPC, nonylphenol ethoxycarboxylates, NPEC, and polyethylene glycols, PEG) in aqueous and solid environmental matrices. First, analytes were extracted by ultrasonic extraction from sediments and suspended solids using methanol at 50°C as solvent and 3 cycles (30 min per cycle). Clean-up and pre-concentration of the extracts and water samples were carried out by solid-phase extraction (SPE), using Oasis HLB cartridges. Recoveries were generally about 80% for most compounds. Identification and quantification of target compounds were performed by liquid chromatography-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (LC-ToF-MS), which has been much less used in the field of environmental analysis than other MS techniques. Examples which illustrate the possible advantages of this technique for multi-analyte analysis of target and non-target contaminants in environmental samples are provided. Finally, the methodology developed here was validated by measuring the concentration of surfactants and their metabolites in selected marine sediment and seawater samples collected in Long Island Sound (NY), and in influent and effluent wastewater from Stony Brook treatment plant (NY). This paper presents some of the first data relative to the occurrence of PEG in the environment, especially in sediments where concentrations were generally higher (up to 1490 μg/kg) than those for other classes of targeted surfactants and their metabolites.     

Application of accelerated solvent extraction to the investigation of saikosaponins from the roots of Bupleurum falcatum

Accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) was applied to the extraction of saikosaponin a, saikosaponin c and saikosaponin d from the roots of Bupleurum falcatum. Main extraction parameters such as the extraction solvents, extraction temperature and static extraction time were investigated and optimized. The optimized procedure employed 70% methanol as extraction solvent, 120°C of extraction temperature, 10 min of static extraction time, 60% of flush volume and the extraction recoveries of the three compounds were near to 100% with one extraction cycle. The extracted samples were analyzed by HPLC with UV detector. The HPLC conditions were as follows: Hypersil ODS2 (4.6 mm×250 mm, 5 μm) column, acetonitrile and water as mobile phase, flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, UV detection wavelength of 204 nm and injection volume of 20 μL. Compared with the traditional methods including heat‐reflux extraction and ultrasonic‐assisted extraction, the proposed ASE method was more efficient and faster to be operated. The results indicated that ASE was an alternative method for extracting saikosaponins from the roots of B. falcatum.     

Simultaneous derivatization and extraction of anilines in waste water with dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometric detection

The one-step derivatization and extraction technique for the determination of anilines in river water by dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) is presented. In this method the anilines are extracted by DLLME and derivatized with pentafluorobenzaldehyde (PFBAY) in aqueous solution simultaneously. In this derivatization/extraction method, 0.5 ml acetone (disperser solvent) containing 10 microl chlorobenzene (extraction solvent) and 30 g/l pentafluorobenzaldehyde (PFBAY) dissolved in methanol was rapidly injected by syringe into 5 ml aqueous sample (pH 4.6). Within 20 min the analytes extracted and derivatized were almost finished. After centrifugation, 2 microl sedimented phase containing enriched analytes was determined by GC-MS. The effects of extraction and disperser solvent type and their volume, pH value of sample solution, derivatization and extraction time, derivatization and extraction temperature were investigated. Linearity in this developed method was ranging from 0.25 to 70 microg/l, and the correlation coefficients (R2) were between 0.9955 and 0.9989, and reasonable reproducibility ranging from 5.8 to 11.8% (n=5). Method detection limits (MDLs) ranged from 0.04 to 0.09 microg/l (n=5).     

Direct extraction of alkylphenols, chlorophenols and bisphenol A from acid-digested sediment suspension for simultaneous gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis

The direct extraction of alkylphenols, chlorophenols and bisphenol A from an acid-digested sediment suspension for GC-MS analysis was studied. The sediment was digested with acid while the hydrolyzed analytes were being extracted with dichloromethane. The conditions of the acid digestion and extraction were optimized in terms of time, acidity of digestion, and extracting solvent. It is possible to complete the extraction within 20 min with 5 ml of 0.1 M HCl digesting solution and three portions of 5 ml of dichloromethane. The recoveries of analytes were mostly around 90% with about 10% relative standard deviations. With this technique parallel treatment of large numbers of sediment samples is possible without any expensive special equipment or heating process. The analytical characteristics of this extraction technique were compared with Soxhlet extraction and the pressurized liquid extraction technique. The technique was examined and evaluated for real environmental sediment samples and certified reference material of natural matrix.     

GC/MS of terpenes in walnut-tree leaves after accelerated solvent extraction

Terpenes, e. g. (+)-alpha-pinene, (-)-camphene, (-)-(-pinene, myrcene, R-(+)-limonene, eucalyptol, (+/-)-linalool, (-)-bornyl acetate, (-)-trans-caryophyllene, and alpha-humulene were determined in leaves of walnut trees from the Juglandaceae family (walnut tree, royal (J. regia L.), black (J. nigra L.), and Siebold (J. sieboldiana, var. Cordiformis Lam.) using gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection. Terpenes were repeatedly (3 cycles, 5 min each) extracted from leaves of walnut trees by accelerated (pressurized) solvent extraction (ASE) 150 bar and 120 degrees C. The efficiency of ASE extraction was superior to that of steam distillation, solvent extraction according to Soxhlet, sonication, and extraction by agitation. Differences in relative concentrations and distribution of terpenes were studied in dependence on the species of walnut tree and on different locations.     

Application of pressurized liquid extraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to determine 4-nonylphenols in sediments

A time- and solvent-saving method, pressurized liquid extraction (PLE), to extract 4-nonylphenol (4-NP) in sediment was developed. The effects of various operational parameters (i.e., temperature, pressure, etc.) for the quantitative extraction of 4-NP by PLE were investigated. The analytes were then identified and quantitated by a large-volume injection GC-MS technique. The 4-NP can be completely extracted by methanol at 100 degrees C and 100 atm combined with 15 min static and then 10 min dynamic extraction steps (1 atm = 101,325 Pa). Recovery of 4-NP in spiked blank kaolin samples was 98% with 5% RSD. The degrees of recovery of 4-NP in the spiked sediment samples from a reservoir and a polluted river were 111% with 4% RSD and 106% with 5% RSD, respectively. The perfect applicability of PLE for 4-NP was determined after testing it with spiked and aged samples. The extraction efficiency of the PLE was compared with conventional Soxhlet and bath ultrasonication extraction methods using the spiked sediment samples.     

A consecutive preparation method based upon accelerated solvent extraction and high‐speed counter‐current chromatography for isolation of aesculin from Cortex fraxinus

A consecutive preparation method based upon accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) coupled with high‐speed counter‐current chromatography (HSCCC) was presented and aesculin was obtained from Cortex fraxinus. The extraction condition of ASE was optimized with response surface methodology; some significant parameters such as the solvent system and its stability, the amount of loading sample in HSCCC were also investigated. The original sample was first extracted with methanol at 105°C and 104 bar for 7 min using ASE, then the extracts were consecutively introduced into the HSCCC system and separated and purified with the same ethyl acetate/n‐butanol/water (7:3:10, v/v/v) solvent system for five times without further exchange and equilibrium. About 3.1 ± 0.2 mg/g in each time and total of 15.4 mg/g aesculin with purity over 95% was isolated from Cortex fraxinus. The results demonstrated that the consecutive preparation method was time and solvent saving and high throughput, it was suitable for isolation of aesculin from Cortex fraxinus, and also has good potential on the separation and purification of effective compounds from natural product.     

加速溶剂萃取-气相色谱-负化学源质谱法测定茶叶中有机氯和拟除虫菊酯类农药残留量

建立了茶叶中13种有机氯和10种拟除虫菊酯农药残留量的气相色谱-负化学离子源.质谱(GC-NCl-MS)分析方法.茶叶样品用V(丙酮):V(CH2Cl2)=1:1混合液作提取剂经加速溶剂萃取,提取液经凝胶色谱净化除去大部分的色素、脂类和蜡质,再经活性炭-氨基(Carb-NH2)复合小柱和Florisil小柱净化后,用GC-NCl-MS的选择离子监测方式(SIM)进行定性和定量分析.添加50μg/kg 浓度水平时,农药回收率在45.6%～112.4%之间,相对标准偏差在0.57%～10.1%之间;方法的检出限(3倍信噪比)在0.05～10.0μg/kg之间.方法适用于出口茶叶农残检测实际工作.     

An atomic absorption spectrometric method for the determination of non-ionic surfactants

A method is described for the determination of non-ionic surfactants in the concentration range 0.05–2 mg l^-1.Surfactant molecules are extracted into 1,2-dichlorobenzene as a neutral adduct with potassium tetrathiocyanatozincate(II) and the determination is completed by atomic absorption spectrometry. With a 150-ml water sample, the limit of detection is 0.03 mg l^-1(as Triton X-100).The method requires a single phase separation step, is applicable, without modification, to fresh, estuarine and sea-water samples and is relatively free from interference by anionic surfactants; the presence of up to 5 mg l^-1 of anionic surfactant (as LAS) introduces an error of no more than 0.07 mg l^-1 (as Triton X-100) in the apparent non-ionic surfactant concentration.     

ASE-HPLC检测某型号球形发射药中的叠氮硝胺、硝化甘油、Ⅱ号中定剂含量的研究

采用快速溶剂萃取（ASE）技术和高效液相色谱法测定某球形药中叠氮硝胺（DIANP）、硝化甘油（NG）和Ⅱ号中定剂（C2）的含量．ASE提取条件：二氯甲烷做萃取溶剂,萃取温度100℃,静态萃取10min,萃取2次．HPLC测定条件：YWGC18柱（150×4．6mm,10μm）,以甲醇和水作为流动相,梯度洗脱,流速1 mL／min,检测波长210nm．测定结果表明DIANP、NG、C2平均回收率分别为99．6％、100．3％、99．4％,RSD分别为0．7％、0．8％、0．9％（n=5）,检出限分别为2.1、1.5和0．2mg／L,线性范围分别为0．02～0．98g／L,0．03～1．38g／L,0．002～0．124g／L．用此方法共检测某批球形发射药样品5份,检测结果与滴析-HPLC法检测结果相当．     

Comparison of extraction techniques and modeling of accelerated solvent extraction for the authentication of natural vanilla flavors

Accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) of vanilla beans has been optimized using ethanol as a solvent. A theoretical model is proposed to account for this multistep extraction. This allows the determination, for the first time, of the total amount of analytes initially present in the beans and thus the calculation of recoveries using ASE or any other extraction technique. As a result, ASE and Soxhlet extractions have been determined to be efficient methods, whereas recoveries are modest for maceration techniques and depend on the solvent used. Because industrial extracts are obtained by many different procedures, including maceration in various solvents, authenticating vanilla extracts using quantitative ratios between the amounts of vanilla flavor constituents appears to be unreliable. When authentication techniques based on isotopic ratios are used, ASE is a valid sample preparation technique because it does not induce isotopic fractionation.     

Simultaneous extraction and determination of anionic surfactants in waters and sediments

A new method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of the most frequently used anionic surfactants - linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS), alkyl ethoxysulfates (AES) and alkyl sulfates (AS) - in aqueous and sediment samples. Preconcentration and purification of water samples are carried out by means of solid-phase extraction (SPE). The efficiency of two different extraction methods for the analysis of sediments - Soxhlet extraction and pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) - has been compared. Identification and quantification of the target compounds is performed using a liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry (LC-MS) system equipped with an electrospray interface (ESI) in negative ion-mode. Homologue recoveries are 85-123% for SPE, 94-112% for Soxhlet extraction and 81-125% for PLE in the case of LAS, and 60-94% for SPE, 61-109% for Soxhlet extraction and 55-99% for PLE in the case of AES, whereas the limits of detection are 0.1-0.5 ngml(-1) in water and 1-5 ngg(-1) in sediment. This method has been applied to the determination of anionic surfactants in the Guadalete estuary (SW Spain), and LAS concentration levels from 538 to 1014 ngg(-1) in sediments and from 25.1 to 64.4 ngml(-1) in waters have been found. AES values from 168 to 536 ngg(-1) in sediments and from 4.5 to 11.9 ngml(-1) in waters are reported for the first time in European rivers.     

Optimization of pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) of dioxin-furans and dioxin-like PCBs from environmental samples

Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) applying three extraction cycles, temperature and pressure, improved the efficiency of solvent extraction when compared with the classical Soxhlet extraction. Polychlorinated-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and dioxin-like PCBs (coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (Co-PCBs)) in two Certified Reference Materials [DX-1 (sediment) and BCR 529 (soil)] and in two contaminated environmental samples (sediment and soil) were extracted by ASE and Soxhlet methods. Unlike data previously reported by other authors, results demonstrated that ASE using n-hexane as solvent and three extraction cycles, 12.4 MPa (1800 psi) and 150 degrees C achieves similar recovery results than the classical Soxhlet extraction for PCDFs and Co-PCBs, and better recovery results for PCDDs. ASE extraction, performed in less time and with less solvent proved to be, under optimized conditions, an excellent extraction technique for the simultaneous analysis of PCDD/PCDFs and Co-PCBs from environmental samples. Such fast analytical methodology, having the best cost-efficiency ratio, will improve the control and will provide more information about the occurrence of dioxins and the levels of toxicity and thereby will contribute to increase human health.     

Dual-opposite injection capillary electrophoresis for the determination of anionic and cationic homologous surfactants in a single run

An electrophoretic method for the simultaneous separation and determination of cationic and anionic surfactants based on double electrokinetic injection from the two ends of the capillary is proposed here. Nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis (NACE) with methanol as solvent was used to reduce the electroosmotic flow so that under these conditions the analytes migrate toward the corresponding electrode. The optimization step was the key to solve the problems associated with surfactants analysis (namely, adsorption on the capillary wall, micelle formation, and those issues related to the separation of homologous compounds). Good results were obtained with the proposed method both for the analysis of both spiked and natural samples, thus demonstrating the applicability of the proposed method for routine analysis. Finally, a comparison between the proposed method and two methods for independent analysis of cationic and anionic surfactants was made. The results showed that the precision (between 1.90 and 4.10% for repeatability and 7.43 and 8.98% for within-laboratory reproducibility, both expressed as relative standard deviation) and sensitivity (limits of detection and quantification between 0.52 and 1.88 microg/mL and between 1.73 and 6.20 microg/mL, respectively) are not affected by the CE mode. The resolution was similar to or better than that of the comparison methods and the analysis time was considerably shortened as both types of compounds were determined in a single run in only 9 min.     

Determination,aerobic biodegradation and environmental occurrence of aliphatic alcohol polyethoxylate sulfates (AES)

A new analytical method was developed for the routine specific determination of the anionic surfactant Alcohol polyEthoxylate Sulfate (AES) in environmental aqueous samples. An enrichment/fractionation of the target analytes in water samples was performed by solid-phase extraction (SPE) on graphitized carbon black (GCB) (recoveries: 90–103%), followed by hydrolysis/derivatization with fluorescent reagents and separation/detection by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography coupled with fluorescence (HPLC-FLD). The developed procedure was applied to the study of the aerobic biodegradation of AES under laboratory conditions and to a ten-month monitoring of AES, as well as of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS), nonylphenol polyethoxylates (NPE) and alcohol polyethoxylates (AE) surfactants, in the Po river (Northern Italy). The residual concentrations found in the river waters were compared and used for a preliminary estimation of the annual average loads of monitored surfactants in the Adriatic Sea.     

Optimization of extraction and quantification technique for phenolics content of garlic (Allium sativum): An application for comparative phytochemical evaluation based on cultivar origin

A range of conventional, i.e. maceration, percolation, ultrasonic assisted, Soxhlet and Soxtec extraction (STE), to advanced extraction techniques of accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) was utilized for the first time in order to optimize the extract yield and recovery of phenolics—gallic acid (GA), rutin (RT) and quercetin (QT)—quantified via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detector (UHPLC–DAD). The effect of solvents (n-hexane, dichloromethane and methanol) and temperature (60, 80 and 100°C) upon extraction yield, phenolic content and antioxidant activity (DPPH, ABTS and DPPH) was studied, and the method was validated in commercial food samples from Saudi Arabia, China and India. A high extract yield with percentage recovery was observed for STE (1221.10 mg/5 g; 24.42%) and ASE techniques (91.50 mg/1 g; 9.15%) in methanol at 100°C. UHPLC–DAD showed retention times (min) of 0.67, 1.93 and 1.90 for GA, RT and QT, respectively in the shortest runtime of 3 min. The yield for phenolics was higher for STE/ASE (ppm): 15.27/15.29 (GA), 85.24/37.56 (RT) and 52.20/33.40 (QT), respectively. In terms of antioxidant activities, low IC₅₀ values (μg/ml) of 1.09/1.18 (DPPH), 2.11/5.32 (ABTS) and 4.35/7.88 (phenazine methosulfate–nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) were observed for STE and ASE, respectively. Multivariate analysis for STE showed a significant (P = 0.000) correlation for extraction type vs. extract yield and phenolics content; however, there was no significance for antioxidant activities vs. extraction type. ASE showed a positive correlation for solvent vs. extraction yield, phenolics and antioxidant activity; however, there was no correlation for extraction yield and DPPH activity. Principal component analysis for STE showed a major variability (52.02%) for extraction yield and phenolics in PC1 followed by PC2 (38.30%) for antioxidant activities. For ASE, PC1 (48.68%) showed a positive correlation for solvent vs. extraction yield and phenolics while PC2 (33.12%) showed a positive correlation for temperature and antioxidant activities. STE and ASE were the optimized extraction techniques for the garlic food sample while a significant effect of solvent and temperature was observed upon extraction yield, phenolics and antioxidant activity.     

Isolation, purification and determination of 4-n-nonylphenol and 4-tert-octylphenol in aqueous and biological samples

The aim of the present study was to attempt to describe the procedure of isolation, purification, enrichment and determination of 4-n-nonylphenol (4-n-NP) and 4-tert-octylphenol (4-t-OP) in water and biological samples (fish tissue). There were five procedures of solid phase extraction (SPE) tested using different sorbents for the isolation of analytes from water samples. Moreover, we isolated these chemicals from biological matrices with the aid of various extraction methods. The purpose of it was to perform an optimisation of ultrasonic bath, accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) and solid phase extraction process of alkylphenols from biological samples, through the choice of selective sorbents (octadecyl, octadecyl end-capped and amine) and search solvents (methylene chloride, methanol, hexane). Reversed-phase HPLC with diode array detection was used for the determination of 4-n-NP and 4-t-OP in water and fish tissue samples. Sensitivity was evaluated by determining the limit of detection (LOD=0.06 and 0.04ng microL(-1)) and limit of quantification (LOQ=0.18 and 0.16ng microL(-1)) of 4-NP and 4-t-OP, respectively. A series of standard solutions for 4-n-NP and 4-t-OP provided the basis for plotting an analytical curve and obtaining a linear dependence in the range of approximately 1-25ng microL(-1). The best efficiencies obtained for 4-n-NP and 4-t-OP in water samples were 76.65% (+/-1.49) and 83.08% (+/-3.73), respectively. In the case of fish tissue, different situation was observed because the obtained values were considerably lower, being 68.32% for 4-t-OP using hexane (program 1) as solvent and 72.35% (program 2) for 4-n-NP using acetonitrile.     

Subcritical water and dynamic sonication-assisted solvent extraction of fluorescent whitening agents and azo dyes in paper samples

Two low-volume solvent continuous extraction methods are applied to the extraction of paper matrices. In the methods reported here, a complex mixture of fluorescent whitening agents (FWAs) and azo dyes (AZOs) used in paper materials intended to come into contact with foodstuffs was extracted by using subcritical water extraction (SWE) and dynamic sonication-assisted solvent extraction (DSASE). Rationale for the work is based upon migration concerns of these groups of analytes from the packaging to the packaged items, thus compromising their subjective and/or objective quality. In SWE, sample was extracted in 21 min with 0.5 mL of water, whereas the DSASE method required 11 min and used 7 mL of water. DSASE was further developed by incorporating an organic modifier in order to change water polarity, thus improving extraction of moderately polar analytes. This way, modified-DSASE used a total organic volume of 0.9 mL which represents a reduction of 200 times in organic solvent consumption (200 mL versus approximately 1.0 mL) and 11 times in extraction time (2h versus 11 min) compared to the existing methods. SWE was able to extract only 9 out of 12 test analytes with average recoveries between 10 and 25% whereas modified-DSASE succeed in extracting all the target analytes with an average recovery of 89%. Complete discussion and explanation concerning these differences are provided in the text.     

Determination of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates by ion-pair solid-phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography

In this paper, the potential use of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) as solid phase extraction (SPE) adsorbent was evaluated for preconcentration of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) using ion-pair (IP)-SPE with tetrabutylammonium hydroxide (TBAH). The LAS homologues present in the aqueous sample were ion-paired with TBAH and the solution was passed through the MWCNT cartridges. The analytes retained in the cartridge were eluted with methanol and the concentrated methanol extract was analysed by HPLC-UV. In order to obtain the satisfactory recovery of LAS homologues, various parameters including the type and amount of the ion-pair reagents, the desorption and enrichment conditions such as the effect of eluent and its volume, pH, the flow rate, the ultrasonic time of sample, and the volume of sample solution were systematically optimized. Under the optimal conditions, LAS homologues could be easily extracted by the proposed SPE cartridge. The favorable limits of detection (LOD) for LAS homologues were in the range from 0.02 to 0.03 μg L⁻¹, and the relative standard deviations (RSDs) were 1.55-2.54% for 10 μg L⁻¹ LAS (n = 6). The proposed method has been successfully applied for the analysis of LAS homologues in aqueous environmental samples. A comparison study with ion-pair solid extraction on MWCNTs, C8 and C18 as adsorbents for LAS demonstrated that ion pair-based solid extraction on MWCNTs adsorbent was advantageous over C8 and C18, the widely used traditional adsorbents.