Speciation analysis of mercury in water samples by dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction coupled to capillary electrophoresis

Microbial antagonistic mechanisms of Hg(II) and Se(IV) in efficient wastewater treatment using granular sludge

The antagonistic effects of mercury (Hg) and selenium (Se) have been extensively studied in higher animals and plants. In this study, the microbial antagonistic effects of Hg and Se were utilized for wastewater treatment. We developed and optimized a new granular sludge approach to efficiently remove Hg(II) and Se(IV) from wastewater. Under anaerobic-oxic-anaerobic (AOA) conditions, the removal rates of Hg(II) and Se(IV) reached up to 99.91±0.07 % and 97.7 ± 0.8 %, respectively. The wastewater Hg(II) was mostly (97.43±0.01 %) converted to an inert mineral called tiemannite (HgSe) in the sludge, and no methylmercury (MeHg) was detected. The HgSe in sludge is less toxic, with almost no risk of secondary release, and it can be recovered with high purity. An inhibition experiment of mercury reduction and the high expression of the mer operon indicated that most Hg(II) (∼71 %) was first reduced to Hg0, and then Hg0 reacted with Se0 to synthesize HgSe. Metagenomic results showed that the final sludge (day 182) was dominated by two unclassified bacteria in the orders Rhodospirillales (27.7 %) and Xanthomonadales (6.3 %). Their metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) were recovered, suggesting that both of them can reduce Hg(II) and Se(IV). Metatranscriptomic analyses indicate that they can independently and cooperatively synthesize HgSe. In summary, granular sludge under AOA conditions is an efficient method for removing and recovering Hg from wastewater. The microbial transformation of Hg2+to Hg0 to HgSe may occur widely in both engineering and natural ecosystems.

S-S bridged Schiff bases as versatile ionophores: Synthesis and application for electrochemical sensing of Copper(II) and Mercury(II)

Schiff base derivates (3, 4 and 5) comprising pseudo cavity with different heteroatoms (O, N and S) were designed, synthesized and explored for their detection behaviour towards diverse metal ions. In UV and fluorescence studies, all three receptors exhibited sensitive response towards Cu2+ while 5 showed sensitivity for Hg2+ also. To explore the synthesized receptors for electrochemical behaviour, voltammetric studies were conducted where 3, 4 and 5 exhibited sensitive response towards Cu2+ with detection limits of 9.8 × 10-7 M, 9.0 × 10-7 M and 1.41 × 10-7 M, respectively. The receptor 5 also showed response towards Hg2+ with detection limit of 5.61 × 10-8 M. The formation of complexes, 3/4+Cu2+ and 5+Cu2+/Hg2+ was supported by large values of binding constant and associated negative free energy change. The binding mechanism of 3, 4 and 5 towards respective metal ions was confirmed using 1H-NMR and HR-MS studies. Further, to utilize the proposed sensors for on-site monitoring of analyte metal ions, carbon paste electrodes (CPEs) were constructed by incorporating 3, 4 and 5. All CPEs showed Nernstian response with lower detection limits and excellent selectivity and successfully utilized for the determination of Cu2+ and Hg2+ in groundwater samples.

Recruiting chemical grafting method for surface modification of stainless steel to fabricate a selective sorbent for solid phase microextraction of mercury metal ion

Keeping selectiveness and efficiency in view with solid-phase microextraction (SPME) of metal ions, this work was aimed at synthesis of a novel modified sorbent on a stainless-steel surface to fabricate a selective and efficient fiber for SPME of mercury ions from real food and biological samples. After the confirmation of sorbent structure grafted on the stainless-steel surface, by different techniques, the synthesized fiber was utilized for extraction and preconcentration of mercury before its measurement by an inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). For optimizing the efficiency, the influences of various factors on the extraction of Hg (II) ion were scrutinized. The optimized values used for extraction were pH 7.0, adsorption time 8 min, desorption time 5 min, 5 mL of eluent solvent containing nitric acid with concentration of 0.5 mol L^-1, and stirring rate of 300 rpm. Underneath optimum condition, the relative standard deviation for 30 extractions, done by one synthesized fiber, was calculated to be 2.89% and for five extractions, done by 5 synthesized fibers, was calculated to be 1.78%. The high performance of the synthesized fiber was checked with high recoveries obtained from 30 successive sorption-desorption cycles, using a unique synthesized fiber. Finally, the suggested procedure was triumphally exploited for extraction and pre-concentration of Hg (II) ion in real food and biological samples.

Recent applications and novel strategies for mercury determination in environmental samples using microextraction-based approaches: A review

The growing need to monitor Hg levels in the environment to control its emissions and evaluate the effectiveness of reduction policies is driving the scientific community to focus efforts on creating analytical methods that are simpler, lower cost, more performing, and environmentally sustainable. In this context, an important contribution is provided by microextraction techniques, which have long proven to be simple, reliable, and to ensure an environmentally responsible sample preparation. This manuscript reviews the recent progress in the determination of environmental Hg using microextraction techniques. The considered studies involve all environmental compartments (i.e., air, water, soil, and biota) and have been discussed by grouping them according to the employed technique while pointing out the main advances achieved and the most important limitations. The ultimate goal is to provide an up-to-date overview of the analytical potential of microextraction techniques that can be exploited in various investigation fields and to highlight the most important knowledge gaps that should be addressed in the coming years, such as in-situ sampling, the use of natural materials, and the value of metrological support to obtain data SI-traceable and comparable.

Ultratrace mercury speciation analysis in rice by in-line solid phase extraction - liquid chromatography - atomic fluorescence spectrometry

For the first time, Hg²⁺ and methylmercury speciation analysis was accomplished by in-line SPE-LC-AFS. After modification with 0.1 mL of 0.001% (m:v) sodium diethyldithiocarbamate, a C₁₈ microcolumn retained Hg²⁺ and MetHg in rice extract within 3 min; the captured Hg species were separated within 12 min in 0.25% (v:v) 2-mercaptoethanol + 60 mmol L^-1 (m:v) ammonium acetate + 4% (v:v) acetonitrile. Under optimized conditions, the detection limits were 0.3 ng L^-1 for Hg²⁺ and 0.2 ng L^-1 for MetHg, respectively, with 10 mL injection vs. 0.1 mL eluent; in-line SPE achieved ∼ 100x enrichment. Method precision and accuracy were satisfactory at < 2% relative standard deviations (RSDs) for 20 ng L^-1 of Hg²⁺ and MetHg and 95-102% recoveries for real rice samples. In-line SPE obviated human involvement and avoided invalid transportation between interfaces, rendering this SPE-LC-AFS method easy, compact, robust, yet sensitive in mercury speciation analysis to uphold food safety.

Application of Capillary Electrophoresis for Determination of Inorganic Analytes in Waters

Aside from HPLC and GC, capillary electrophoresis (CE) is one of the most important techniques for high-performance separations in modern analytical chemistry. Its main advantages are the possibility of using different detection techniques, the possibility of in-capillary sample processing for preconcentration or derivatization, and ease of instrumental miniaturization down to the microfluidic scale. Those features are utilized in the separation of macromolecules in biochemistry and in genetic investigations, but they can be also used in determinations of inorganic ions in water analysis. This review, based on about 100 original research works, presents applications of CE methods in water analysis reported in recent decade, mostly regarding conductivity detection or indirect UV detection. The developed applications include analysis of high salinity sea waters, as well as analysis of other surface waters and drinking waters.

Simultaneous determination of five metal ions by on-line complexion combined with micelle to solvent stacking in capillary electrophoresis

A direct on-line complexion combined with micelle to solvent stacking method was proposed for simultaneous determination of metal ions by capillary electrophoresis coupled diode array detector. During the experiment, a plug of complexing agent was first injected to the inlet of capillary, followed by introducing the micelle-bound metal ions. Then the metal ions produced a micelle-to-solvent stacking effect and interacted with the complexing agent under a positive voltage. Continued application of voltage, the analytes were effectively focused and separated in the capillary zone electrophoresis. Repeatability was ranged from 1.89% to 1.94% for the migration time. The detection limits were 2.66-27.9 ng mL^-1 for Ni²⁺, Co²⁺, Cu²⁺, Hg²⁺ and Cd²⁺. Furthermore, the developed method showed a great potential for the determination of metal ions in the crayfish, beebread and Dendrobium officinale samples.

Direct speciation analysis of organic mercury in fish and kelp by on-line complexation and stacking using capillary electrophoresis

To determine organic mercury (Hg) species that could not be detected by ultraviolet (UV), a highly automated on-line complexation method was established, which combined with normal stacking by capillary electrophoresis-diode array detector. The approach was based on the fact that the compounds and complex reagent interacted to form hydrophilic chelates under the effect of the separation voltage, which was effectively separated and detected by UV. Key parameters, such as the type and concentration of complex reagent, separation voltage and so on were systematically investigated. Under the optimized conditions, the precision and repeatability were in the range of 0.16-3.31% and 0.17-1.21%, respectively. Furthermore, PhHg, EtHg and MeHg were effectively separated and determined in fresh fish (Silver carp) muscle and kelp (Kombu) with the recoveries of 84.63-111.39% and 75.68-114.76%, respectively. The proposed method had the advantages of easy-operating, cost-efficient, stable and reliable compared to off-line complexation method.

Recent developments of capillary electrophoresis in seawater analysis

Recent applications of capillary electrophoresis (CE) to the determination of various seawater analytes are critically examined, with the aim to reveal method's state-of-the-art and possible future research trends in the area. Given highly developed separation and detection methodology, emphasis is given to the most advantageous sample preconcentration strategies used to evolve the method's practical utility, particularly to low-level analytes. Analytical performance of CE applied to seawater analysis is illustrated with a selection of real-world applications published from 2006, from which it appears that the primary developmental tendency is presently confined to a transit from inorganic to organic seawater analytes.

Speciation Analysis of Trace Arsenic, Mercury, Selenium and Antimony in Environmental and Biological Samples Based on Hyphenated Techniques

In order to obtain a well understanding of the toxicity and ecological effects of trace elements in the environment, it is necessary to determine not only the total amount, but also their existing species. Speciation analysis has become increasingly important in making risk assessments of toxic elements since the toxicity and bioavailability strongly depend on their chemical forms. Effective separation of different species in combination with highly sensitive detectors to quantify these particular species is indispensable to meet this requirement. In this paper, we present the recent progresses on the speciation analysis of trace arsenic, mercury, selenium and antimony in environmental and biological samples with an emphasis on the separation and detection techniques, especially the recent applications of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) hyphenated to atomic spectrometry or mass spectrometry.

Plasmonic nanoprobes based on the shape transition of Au/Ag core–shell nanorods to dumbbells for sensitive Hg-ion detection

Sensitive plasmonic nanoprobes for the sensitive detection of mercury ions based on a “rod-like to dumbbell or not” morphology transition of the Au/Ag core–shell hybrid nanorods.

Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction of five chlorophenols in water samples followed by determination using capillary electrophoresis

Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) coupled with CE was developed for simultaneous determination of five types of chlorophenols (CPs), namely 2-chlorophenol (2-CP), 4-chlorophenol (4-CP), 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP), 2,6-dichlorophenol (2,6-DCP), and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP) in water samples. Several parameters affecting DLLME and CE conditions were systematically investigated. Under the optimized DLLME-CE conditions, the five CPs were separated completely within 7.5 min and good enrichment factors were obtained of 40, 193, 102, 15, and 107 for 4-CP, 2,4,6-TCP, 2,4-DCP, 2-CP, and 2,6-DCP, respectively. Good linearity was attained in the range of 1-200 μg/L for 2,4,6-TCP, 2,4-DCP, 2-300 μg/L for 4-CP and 2-CP, and 1-300 μg/L for 2,6-DCP, with correlation coefficients (r) over 0.99. The LOD (S/N = 3) and the LOQ (S/N = 10) were 0.31-0.75 μg/L and 1.01-2.43 μg/L, respectively. Recoveries ranging from 60.85 to 112.36% were obtained with tap, lake, and river water spiked at three concentration levels and the RSDs (for n = 3) were 1.31-11.38%. With the characteristics of simplicity, cost-saving, and environmental friendliness, the developed DLLME-CE method proved to be potentially applicable for the rapid, sensitive, and simultaneous determination of trace CPs in complicated water samples.

Speciation analysis of mercury by dispersive solid-phase extraction coupled with capillary electrophoresis

A pretreatment method of dispersive solid-phase extraction (DSPE) along with back-extraction followed by CE-UV detector was developed for the determination of mercury species in water samples. Sulfhydryl-functionalized SiO2 microspheres (SiO2 -SH) were synthesized and used as DSPE adsorbents for selective extraction and enrichment of three organic mercury species namely ethylmercury (EtHg), methylmercury (MeHg), and phenylmercury (PhHg), along with L-cysteine (L-cys) containing hydrochloric acid as back-extraction solvent. Several main extraction parameters were systematically investigated including sample pH, amount of adsorbent, extraction and back-extraction time, volume of eluent, and concentration of hydrochloric acid. Under optimal conditions, good linearity was achieved with correlation coefficients over 0.9990, in the range of 4-200 μg/L for EtHg, and 2-200 μg/L for MeHg and PhHg. The LODs were obtained of 1.07, 0.34, and 0.24 μg/L for EtHg, MeHg, and PhHg, respectively, as well as the LOQs were 3.57, 1.13, and 0.79 μg/L, respectively, with enrichment factors ranging from 109 to 184. Recoveries were attained with tap and lake water samples in a range of 62.3-107.2%, with relative standard deviations of 3.5-10.1%. The results proved that the method of SiO2 -SH based DSPE coupled with CE-UV was a simple, rapid, cost-effective, and eco-friendly alternative for the determination of mercury species in water samples.

Microfluidic chip for droplet-based AuNP synthesis with dielectric barrier discharge plasma and on-chip mercury ion detection

This study presents a novel microfluidic chip that can achieve on-demand gold nanoparticle (AuNP) synthesis using atmospheric pressure helium plasma and on-site mercury ion detection. Instead of using conventional chemical reaction methods, this chip uses helium plasma as the reducing agent to reduce gold ions and to synthesize AuNP, such that there is no residual reducing agent in the solution after removing the external electric field for plasma generation. The plasma discharge, gas–liquid separation, liquid collection and mercury ion detection can be achieved by this proposed microfluidic chip. The synthesized gold nanoparticles are further functionalized by 3-mercaptopropionic acid (3-MPA) for mercury ion detection. The 3-MPA-capped gold nanoparticles aggregate and result in a colour change of the solution due to the existence of Hg²⁺. The absorption spectra of the solution shifts from red to blue due to the cluster aggregation. The concentration of Hg²⁺ can be quantitatively determined by UV-Vis spectrometry, and the limit of detection was found to be 10⁻⁶ M (0.2 ppm). This developed integrated microfluidic device provides a simple and on-demand method for synthesis of AuNPs and Hg²⁺ detection in a single chip.

This study presents a novel microfluidic chip that can achieve on-demand gold nanoparticle (AuNP) synthesis using atmospheric pressure helium plasma and on-site mercury ion detection.

Selenium speciation in tea by dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography after derivatization with 2,3-diaminonaphthalene

Selenium is an important element for human health, and it is present in many natural drinks and foods. Present study described a new method using dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction prior to high-performance liquid chromatography with a UV variable wavelength detector for the determination of the total selenium, Se(IV), Se(VI), and total organoselenium in tea samples. In the procedure, 2,3-diaminonaphthalene was used as the chelating reagent, 400 μL acetonitrile was used as the disperser solvent and 60 μL chlorobenzene was used as the extraction solvent. The complex of Se(IV) and 2,3-diaminonaphthalene in the final extracted phase was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. The factors influencing the derivatization and microextraction were investigated. Under the optimal conditions, the limit of detection was 0.11 μg/L for Se(IV) and the linearity range was in the range of 0.5-40 μg/L. This method was successfully applied to the determination of selenium in four tea samples with spiked recoveries ranging from 91.3 to 100%.

Colorimetric detection of mercury species based on functionalized gold nanoparticles

The speciation analysis of heavy metal pollutants is very important because different species induce different toxicological effects. Nanomaterial-assisted optical sensors have achieved rapid developments, displaying wide applications to heavy metal ions but few to metal speciation analysis. In this work, a novel colorimetric nanosensor strategy for mercury speciation was proposed for the first time, based on the analyte-induced aggregation of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) with the assistance of a thiol-containing ligand of diethyldithiocarbamate (DDTC). Upon the addition of mercury species, because Hg-DDTC was more stable than Cu-DDTC, a place-displacement between Hg species and Cu(2+) would occur, and thereby the functionalized Au NPs would aggregate, resulting in a color change. Moreover, by virtue of the masking effect of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), the nanosensor could readily discriminate organic mercury and inorganic mercury (Hg(2+)), and it is thus anticipated to shed some light on the colorimetric sensing of organic mercury. So, a direct, simple colorimetric assay for selective determination of Hg species was obtained, presenting high detectability, such as up to 10 nM for Hg(2+) and 15 nM for methylmercury. Meanwhile, the strategy offered excellent selectivity toward mercury species against other metal ions. The simple, rapid, and sensitive label-free colorimetric sensor for the determination of Hg species provided an attractive alternative to conventional methods, which usually involve sophisticated instruments, complicated processes, and long periods of time. More importantly, by using mercury as a model, an excellent nanomaterial-based optical sensing platform can be developed for speciation analysis of trace heavy metals, which can lead to nanomaterials stability change through smart functionalization and reasonable interactions.

Fluorescent carbon nanoparticles for the fluorescent detection of metal ions

Fluorescent carbon nanoparticles (F-CNPs) as a new kind of fluorescent nanoparticles, have recently attracted considerable research interest in a wide range of applications due to their low-cost and good biocompatibility. The fluorescent detection of metal ions is one of the most important applications. In this review, we first present the general detection mechanism of F-CNPs for the fluorescent detection of metal ions, including fluorescence turn-off, fluorescence turn-on, fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and ratiometric response. We then focus on the recent advances of F-CNPs in the fluorescent detection of metal ions, including Hg(2+), Cu(2+), Fe(3+), and other metal ions. Further, we discuss the research trends and future prospects of F-CNPs. We envision that more novel F-CNPs-based nanosensors with more accuracy and robustness will be widely used to assay and remove various metal ions, and there will be more practical applications in coming years.

Hg2+ion-imprinted polymers sorbents based on dithizone–Hg2+chelation for mercury speciation analysis in environmental and biological samples

Novel Hg²⁺ion-imprinted polymers were synthesized using the chelate of dithizone and Hg²⁺as template for mercury speciation analysis.