On-line selective solid-phase extraction of 4-nitrophenol with β-cyclodextrin bonded silica

Nanosponges by the oxo-Michael polyaddition of cyclodextrins as sorbents of water pollutants: the o-toluidine case

Hydrophilic cyclodextrin nanosponges were prepared by the oxo-Michael polyaddition in an aqueous solution at pH > 10 of α-, β-, and γ-cyclodextrin with 1,4-bisacryloylpiperazine or 2,2-bisacrylamidoacetic acid. These nanosponges and, for comparison purposes, their precursor cyclodextrins were tested as sorbents of o-toluidine, a carcinogenic wastewater contaminant, by monitoring the depletion of o-toluidine from a 10^-4 M (10 ppm) aqueous solutions. To this aim, an innovative analytical procedure was used: The voltammetric peak currents of o-toluidine in linear sweep voltammetry experiments were registered using multi-walled carbon nanotubes-modified glassy carbon electrodes. The experimental sorption curves fitted a mono-exponential kinetic model, and the residual o-toluidine was 0.16 ppm, one order of magnitude lower than those of all other sorbents reported so far. The sorption capacities ranged from 88 to 199 µmol g^-1 (10-21.3 mg g^-1), equal to or higher than those of the parent cyclodextrins. All nanosponges were completely regenerated by extracting with methanol. After regeneration, the sorption capacity slightly improved, suggesting a rearrangement of the nanosponge network. Overall, it may be reasonably concluded that the cyclodextrin nanosponges reported in this paper warrant potential as o-toluidine exhaustive sorbents.

Cyclodextrins as a Key Piece in Nanostructured Materials: Quantitation and Remediation of Pollutants

Separation and pre-concentration of trace pollutants from their matrix by reversible formation of inclusion complexes has turned into a widely studied field, especially for the benefits provided to different areas. Cyclodextrins are non-toxic oligosaccharides that are well known for their host–guest chemistry, low prices, and negligible environmental impact. Therefore, they have been widely used as chiral selectors and delivery systems in the pharmaceutical and food industry over time. However, their use for extraction purposes is hampered by their high solubility in water. This difficulty is being overcome with a variety of investigations in materials science. The setting-up of novel solid sorbents with improved properties thanks to the presence of cyclodextrins at their structure is still an open research area. Some properties they can offer, such as an increased selectivity or a good distribution along the surface of a solid support, which provides better accessibility for guest molecules, are characteristics of great interest. This systematic review reports the most significant uses of cyclodextrins for the adsorption of pollutants in different-origin samples based on the works reported in the literature in the last years. The study has been carried out indistinctly for quantitation and remediation purposes.

New trends in sample preparation techniques for environmental analysis

Environmental samples include a wide variety of complex matrices, with low concentrations of analytes and presence of several interferences. Sample preparation is a critical step and the main source of uncertainties in the analysis of environmental samples, and it is usually laborious, high cost, time consuming, and polluting. In this context, there is increasing interest in developing faster, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly sample preparation techniques. Recently, new methods have been developed and optimized in order to miniaturize extraction steps, to reduce solvent consumption or become solventless, and to automate systems. This review attempts to present an overview of the fundamentals, procedure, and application of the most recently developed sample preparation techniques for the extraction, cleanup, and concentration of organic pollutants from environmental samples. These techniques include: solid phase microextraction, on-line solid phase extraction, microextraction by packed sorbent, dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction, and QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe).

Preparative separation and purification of epigallocatechin gallate from green tea extracts using a silica adsorbent containing β-cyclodextrin

A silica adsorbent containing β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) has been developed and used for the separation and purification of epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) from the green tea extracts. The batch adsorption experiments demonstrated that, the β-CD bonded silica adsorbent possessed excellent adsorption equilibrium capacity (> 55 mg/g adsorbent) and adsorption ratio (>95%) for EGCG compared to the other tea catechins and caffeine. The excellent adsorption capacity and selectivity for EGCG are attributed to the specific interactions between β-CD and EGCG. The preparative separation and purification performance of EGCG on the β-CD bonded silica column (220 mm L × 15 mm i.d., 40-63 μm) was then evaluated. The column was operated in the polar organic mode using methanol/acetonitrile/acetic acid as the mobile phase and eluted under a three-step gradient elution program. The sample was dissolved in acetonitrile and loaded on a preparative scale of about 0.8 mg/g adsorbent. Under the optimal chromatographic conditions, the target compound, EGCG, being the most retained species, was obtained at a purity of about 90% with a recovery of about 90%. The productivity of EGCG was about 6 mg per injection, which can be further increased by scaling-up the chromatographic system.

Analysis of phenols in water by high-performance liquid chromatography using coumarin-6-sulfonyl chloride as a fluorogenic precolumn label

A simple, sensitive and rapid reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method is proposed for the analysis of some environmentally important phenols in water. The use of coumarin-6-sulphonyl chloride (C6SCl) as a fluorescence-labeling reagent has been investigated. The compound reacts with phenols within 20 min under mild conditions (ambient temperature, pH 9.0) to give sulphonates that can be separated by RP-HPLC employing fluorescence detection at lambda(ex) = 360 and lambda(em) = 460 nm. The optimum conditions for fluorescence, derivatization and chromatographic separation have been established and detection limits in the range 0.1-0.9 microg l(-1) were obtained for the studied compounds. The calibration curves were linear for the range 6-200 microg l(-1) for phenol, 3-200 microg l(-1) for 2-chlorophenol, 4-chlorophenol and 2,3,5-trichlorophenol and for the range of 3-100 microg l(-1) for 2,3-dichlorophenol and 3,5-dichlorophenol. The practical applicability of the method to environmental samples was demonstrated by analyzing drinking and industrial water samples spiked with the phenolic compounds.

β-Cyclodextrin-bonded silica particles as the solid-phase extraction medium for the determination of phenol compounds in water samples followed by gas chromatography with flame ionization and mass spectrometry detection

A new absorbent for solid-phase extraction (SPE) was prepared by a beta-cyclodextrin bonded silica stationary phase (CDS) has been applied to determine the concentrations of phenol compounds in water samples. SPE of selected phenolic compounds from aqueous samples were performed using 250 mg CDS. The determination was subsequently carried out by gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Compared with available SPE, the CDS showed high sensitivity and fast velocity of mass transfer for phenolic compound because of its porous structure of beta-cyclodextrin. The relative standard deviation (RSD) for river water sample spiked with phenolic compounds at sub-ppb level was lower than 10% and limit of detection (LOD) for these compounds were between 10 and 100 ng l(-1).

Uniformly sized molecularly imprinted polymer for atropine and its application to the determination of atropine and scopolamine in pharmaceutical preparations containing Scopolia extract

A uniformly sized molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) for atropine has been prepared. The MIP was prepared using 2-(trifluoromethyl) acrylic acid and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as a functional monomer and cross-linker, respectively, by a multi-step swelling and thermal polymerization method. The selectivity factor, which is defined as the ratio of the retention factors (k) on the molecularly imprinted and non-imprinted polymers, k(imprinted)/k(non-imprinted), was 2.2 for atropine on the MIP. The obtained MIP was applied for the determination of tropane alkaloids (atropine and scopolamine) in a commercial gastrointestinal drug by a column-switching HPLC system, consisting of an MIP material as a pre-column, and a conventional cation-exchange analytical column. An interference peak was observed at the retention time of atropine derived from pre-column. However, since the peak area was less than 0.5% the peak area of atropine of a standard solution under the analytical conditions of this study (0.2 microg of atropine was loaded), this interference was negligible in the determination of atropine. On the other hand, no interference peak was observed at the retention time of scopolamine. Calibration curves of atropine and scopolamine showed good linearity in the range of 0.02-0.9 microg/ml (r=0.9999) and 0.003-0.09 microg/ml (r=0.9998), respectively. The mean recoveries of atropine and scopolamine from a placebo pharmaceutical preparation sample were 98.9 and 99.9%, respectively. The intra-day precision (measured by relative standard deviation, R.S.D. (%)) of both ingredients was less than 2.0%. The optimized column-switching system was applied successfully to the determination of atropine and scopolamine in a commercial gastrointestinal drug.

Preconcentration and determination of priority pollutant phenols in waters at trace levels using a polymeric solid-phase extraction cartridge

A method to preconcentrate and analyse the EPA priority pollutant phenols from water samples is evaluated. Spe-ed Advanta cartridges, containing 100mg of a polymeric matrix modified with polar groups, are used in the extraction and enrichment step. Several parameters are studied in order to find the best experimental conditions to perform a solid-phase extraction process. Sample flow rate and pH appear as variables that could significantly affect the recoveries obtained. Water samples need a pH adjustment to values lower than 3 units and must be percolated through the cartridges with flow rates over 5 mL min(-1). The highest recoveries and preconcentrations are obtained using acetonitrile as the elution solvent. Sample volumes from 100 mL to 1 L with concentrations ranging from 50 to 0.5 microg L(-1) are analysed with quantitative recoveries and similar efficiencies being achieved. After establishing the best conditions, we applied the method to the analysis of spiked natural waters.

Solid-phase Microextraction of Phenol Compounds Using a Fused-Silica Fiber Coated with β-Cyclodextrin-bonded Silica Particles

A novel solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fiber was prepared by coating an HPLC beta-cyclodextrin bonded silica stationary phase (CDS) on the surface of a fused-silica fiber. The fiber was evaluated for the determination of five phenol compounds (phenol, 2,4-dimethylphenol, 4-nitrophenol, 3-chlorophenol, 4-methylphenol). Compared with commercially available polymer coatings, the CDS coating showed high sensitivity and fast velocity of mass transfer for phenol compounds because of its porous structure and a unique molecular structure of beta-cyclodextrin. In addition, the CDS coating was proved to be very stable at a relatively high temperature (up to 300 degrees C). The method was suitable for the determination of phenol compounds in aqueous samples. The determination of 4-nitrophenol in soil by microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) coupled to solid-phase microextraction was also investigated.