Characteristics of immunosorbents used as a new approach to selective solid-phase extraction in environmental analysis

Summary The trace-level determination of organic pollutants in complex matrices is difficult and often not reliable because theccurrent extraction procedures are non-selective. New extraction sorbents involving antigen-antibody interactions, called immunosorbents (ISs), have been synthesised in order to trap a group of structurally related pollutants. The IS capacity is always high for the analyte-antigen used to make the antibodies, but can be low for some related compounds. In this work, we show the relationship that exists between capacity, break-through volume and recovery of analytes because of the competition between the structurally related compounds for antibody sites. Breakthrough due to the overloading of the column should be avoided because calibration curves are no longer linear. The capacity of two ISs, one made for trapping the triazine pesticide group and the second for the phenylurea, group, have been optimised by selecting silica with 50 nm pore size. Calibration curves are linear for all the compounds in a mixture of ten phenylureas up to a concentration of 5 to 10 μg L⁻¹ for each compound when handling 50 mL water samples through a precolumn packed with 0.22 g of IS. Under these conditions, reliable quantitative results are obtained because calibration curves are similar when compounds are alone or in a mixture. Application to the clean-up of soil extracts illustrates the high selectivity and the high potential of these new sorbents in environmental analysis. Presented at the 21^st ISC held in Stuttgart, Germany, 15^th–20^th September, 1996     

Analysis of organic pollutants in water at trace levels using fully automated solid-phase extraction coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary A method has been developed for the determination of trace levels of 32 pesticides, 19 explosives and 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in water in three individual steps. Solid-phase enrichment (SPE) is coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a fully automated system. The organic pollutants are enriched on reusable cartridges packed with adsorbent materials: pesticides and explosives on a mixed bed of divinylbenzene-ethylvinylbenzene copolymers (LiChrolut EN^?) and perfluorinated polyethylene (PolyF^?), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on C₁₈-modified silica (Zorbax^? ODS1). Thermally assisted desorption (TAD) has been shown to increase the recovery of analytes significantly. As all enriched analytes are transferred to the detector, only fifty millilitres of sample is needed for each single on-line analysis, compared with at least a litre for conventional methods. The separation of the enriched organic analytes is performed on specialized HPLC columns based on reversed-phase materials. The limits of detection of the system employed were found to be below 100 ng L⁻¹. Use of fluorescence detection for the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons resulted in limits of detection in the upper pg L⁻¹ range. Thek values, number of theoretical plates, the recovery rates and the limits of detection of this method for fast screening of organic pollutants from three fifty-millilitre aqueous samples are described. Presented at the 21^st ISC held in Stuttgart, Germany, 15^th–20^th September, 1996     

Selective solid-phase extraction of Cu(II) using freshly precipitated lead diethyldithiocarbamate and its spectrophotometric determination

A new solid-phase extraction method has been developed for the selective extraction of Cu(II) in an aqueous system using freshly precipitated lead diethyldithiocarbamate (Pb(DDTC)₂) as a reagent. The method is based on the quantitative replacement of Pb(II) ions in the solid Pb(DDTC)₂ phase by Cu(II) ions present in aqueous phase. The obtained solid Cu(DDTC)₂ phase was dissolved in chloroform and determined spectrophotometrically at 435 nm. Beer’s law was obeyed over the concentration range of 0.2–5 mg dm⁻³. The molar absorptivity and the Sandell’s sensitivity coefficients of the solutions were 1.0689 × 10⁴ dm³ mol⁻¹ cm⁻¹ and 0.0060 μg cm⁻², respectively. The optimum conditions for each parameter were experimentally determined and possible interferences of various salts were also studied. The method has been validated and applied to determine Cu(II) in various alloys and water samples.     

Determination of trace elements in seawater samples by on-line column extraction/graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

An innovative procedure for the on-line coupling of ion chromatography with graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry is described, which is particularly effective for the determination of trace metals in seawater samples. The Capillary Injection Device (CID) is used as an interface which allows the eluent to be transferred from the chromatographic column into the graphite tube at a flow rate of as high as 2 ml/min. The analytical procedure is based on the metal complex formation with 8-hydroxyquinoline in the sample solution, followed by the preconcentration of the complexes in a chromatographic column packed with XAD-2 resin. The complexes were then eluted from the column with methanol, and quantitatively injected into the furnace. The procedure was validated by determining cadmium and lead in certified reference seawater samples at a level of 30–40 pg/g, with a typical reproducibility of 10% and an accuracy of better than 5%. Finally, it was tested on a real sample of seawater. Due to the high reproducibility, a pg/g concentration level can be measured.     

Determination of didanosine in human serum by on-line solid-phase extraction coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometric detection: application to a bioequivalence study

A method based on solid-phase extraction coupled to liquid chromatography with positive ion electrospray ionization and tandem mass spectrometric detection was developed for the determination of didanosine in human serum, using lamivudine as internal standard. The acquisition was performed in the multiple reaction monitoring mode, monitoring the transitions m/z 237 --> 136.7 for didanosine and m/z 230 --> 111.7 for lamivudine. The method was linear over the range studied (10-1500 ng ml(-1)), with r(2) > 0.98, and the run time was 5 min. The intra- and inter-assay precisions were < or =10% and the intra- and inter-assay accuracies were >95%. The absolute recoveries were 99.8% (10 ng ml(-1)), 98.4% (30 ng ml(-1)), 91.5% (700 ng ml(-1)) and 94.7% (1200 ng ml(-1)). The limits of detection and quantitation were 5 and 10 ng ml(-1), respectively. The method was applied to a bioequivalence study, in which 24 healthy adult volunteers (12 men) received single oral doses (200 mg) of reference and test didanosine formulations (buffered powder for oral solutions), in an open, two-way, randomized, crossover protocol. The 90% confidence interval of the individual ratios (test formulation/reference formulation) for C(max) (peak serum concentration) and AUC(0-inf) (area under the serum concentration versus time curve from time zero to infinity) were within the range 80-125%, which supports the conclusion that the two formulations are bioequivalent regarding the rate and extent of didanosine absorption.     

Extraction Behavior of Amino Acids by Calix[6]arene Carboxylic Acid Derivatives

A series of calixarene carboxylic acid derivatives were synthesized for the extraction of amino acids. A calix[6]arene carboxylic acid derivative showed the highest extractability to the target tryptophan ester. The main driving forcefor the complexation was the interaction between the ammonium cation of the aminoacid and the oxygen atoms of the host molecule. Stripping of amino acids was alsoaccomplished by contacting the organic solution with a fresh acidic solution. Basedon slope and Job method analyses, it was confirmed that the calix[6]arene formsa 1 : 1 complex with the amino acid ester. The structure of the complex between the calix[6]arene and the amino acid was investigated by ¹H-NMR and CD spectra. The calix[6]arene includes a guest molecule in the cavity, and the inclusion induces the asymmetrization of the host molecule. This host compound functions as a novel recognition tool for amino acids.     

Complex forming and extraction properties of oligo benzo-fused crown ethers

The complex forming properties with alkali metal and ammonium ions of a series of oligo benzo-condensed 18-crown-6 ethers1–8 having a different gradation of lipophilicity and of molecular rigidity are investigated by voltammetry at the interface of two immiscible electrolyte solutions (ITIES) and by a liquid-liquid extraction technique. The experimental results obtained in the two phase system H₂O/nitrobenzene are discussed in relation to the structure of the crown and the cation type. The stability constants for the 1 : 1 complexes of Na⁺, K⁺, Rb⁺, Cs⁺ and NH ₄ ⁺ in nitrobenzene have been determined and compared with the extraction constants for the 1: 1 complexes of Na⁺ and K⁺ and for the 1 : 1 and 1 : 2 complexes of Cs⁺, showing the effect of oligo benzo condensation for the 18-crown-6 system.     

Quantitative Analysis of Sulfonamide Residues in Natural Animal Casings by HPLC

A multiresidue method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of sulfadiazine, sulfathiazole, sulfapyridine, sulfamerazine, sulfamethoxydiazine, sulfamethylthiazole, sulfamethazine, sulfamonomethoxine, sulfamethoxypyridazine, sulfisoxazole, sulfamethoxazole, sulfadimethoxine and sulfaquinoxaline in natural animal casings by HPLC after solid-phase extraction. The sulfonamides were extracted with acetonitrile and the extract cleaned up with an Oasis MCX SPE cartridge prior to analysis. Separation was on a ZOBAX Eclipse XDB-C₈ column using gradient elution with acetonitrile/methanol/0.1% acetic acid. The effect of separation conditions on chromatographic behavior and recovery has been studied. Calibration graphs were linear with very good correlation coefficients (r = 0.9983−0.9996) in the concentration range from 0.02 to 1 μg mL⁻¹. The limits of quantitation (LOQ) for the 13 sulfonamides were in the range of 1.5–2.2 μg kg⁻¹. Decision limits (CCα) and detection capabilities (CCβ) were in the range of 105.2–111.0 and 113.0–120.2 μg kg⁻¹, respectively. The recovery for casings spiked with 1.5–100 μg kg⁻¹ ranged from 65.2 to 85.9%. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) of the sulfonamides for six measurements at 100 μg kg⁻¹ were from 2.2 to 7.7%. The applicability of the method to the analysis of salted swine casings, salted sheep casings and dry casing samples was demonstrated.     

Extraction Kinetics of Rare Earth Elements with sec—Octyl—phenoxy Acetic Acid

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The complexing ability of crown ethers incorporating glucose

The complexing (in CHCl₃) and extracting abilities of 18-crown-6 type compounds (1–15) were measured with Li, Na, K and NH₄ cations. The substituents on the sugar part affected these properties significantly (K _a=10³–10⁷). Some substituents, like acetyloxy groups (3) decreased whereas others, like tosyloxy groups (10, 11) significantly increased the complexing ability and thus changed the selectivity. The compound with four tosyloxy groups (11) shows an excellent picrate salt extracting ability in a CH₂Cl₂-water system.