Accordion-like Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheets as a high-performance solid phase microextraction adsorbent for determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using GC-MS

Enrichment and detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon in tea and coffee using phenyl-functionalized NiFe2O4@Ti3C2TX based magnetic solid-phase extraction

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are commonly found in various environmental matrices and have received significant attention due to their toxic effects on ecosystems and environmental health. In this study, a specific magnetic composite material derived from MXene, known as phenyl-functionalized NiFe2O4@Ti3C2TX, was designed and synthesized using a simple method. This composite material was used to develop an effective magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) method for enriching trace polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in tea and coffee samples. The eluted PAHs were analyzed via gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Under optimal conditions, this method exhibited excellent linear relationships for 16 PAHs within the ranges of 0.001-25 and 0.0005-25 μg/L, with correlation coefficients exceeding 0.9979. The limits of detection for the target PAHs ranged from 0.1 to 0.3 ng/L. The effectiveness of the proposed method was evaluated by analyzing tea and coffee samples, and the satisfactory spiked recoveries of PAHs ranged from 84.5% to 112.6%.

Covalent organic framework-functionalized magnetic MXene nanocomposite for efficient pre-concentration and detection of organophosphorus and organochlorine pesticides in tea samples before gas chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry analysis

In this study, a hydrophobic covalent organic framework-functionalized magnetic composite (CoFe2O4@Ti3C2@TAPB-TFTA) with a high specific area with 1,3,5-tris(4-aminophenyl)benzene (TAPB) and 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoroterephthalaldehyde (TFTA) was designed and synthesized through Schiff base reaction. An efficient magnetic solid-phase extraction method was established and combined with gas chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry to sensitively determine 10 organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides in tea samples. The established method exhibited good linearity in the range of 0.05-120 μg/L and had low limits of detection (0.013-0.018 μg/L). The method was evaluated with tea samples, and the spiked recoveries of pesticides in different tea samples reached satisfactory values of 85.7-96.8%. Moreover, the adsorption of pesticides was spontaneous and followed Redlich-Peterson isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic models. These results demonstrate the sensitivity, effectiveness, and reliability of the proposed method for monitoring organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides in tea samples, providing a preliminary basis for researchers to reasonably design adsorbents for the efficient extraction of pesticides.

Ordered mesoporous hairbrush-like nanocarbon assembled microfibers for solid-phase microextraction of benzene series in oilfield sewage

The development of advanced functional nanomaterials for solid-phase microextraction (SPME) remains an imperative aspect of sample pretreatment. Herein, we introduce a novel SPME fiber consisting of graphene fibers modified with ordered mesoporous carbon nanotubes arrays (CNTAs) tailored for the determination of benzene series in oilfield wastewater, which is synthesized by an ionic liquid-assisted wet spinning process of graphene nanosheets, followed by a precisely controlled growth of metal-organic framework and subsequent pyrolysis treatment. The resulting robust microfiber structure resembles a "hairbrush" configuration, with a crumpled graphene fiber "stem" and high-order mesoporous CNTAs "hairs". This unique architecture significantly enhances the SPME capacity, as validated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The hairbrush-like nanocarbon assembled microfibers possess structural characteristics, a high specific surface area, and numerous binding sites, offering efficient enrichment of benzene series compounds in oilfield wastewater, including benzene, ethylbenzene, m-xylene, p-xylene, and toluene. Our analysis demonstrates that these microfibers exhibit broad linear ranges (0.2-600 μg L-1), low detection limits (0.005-0.03 mg L-1), and excellent repeatability (3.2-5.5% for one fiber, 2.1-6.7% for fiber-to-fiber) for detection. When compared to commercial alternatives, these hairbrush-like nanocarbon-assembled microfibers exhibit significantly enhanced extraction efficiency for benzene series compounds.

Three-Dimensional Network of Highly Uniform Cobalt Oxide Microspheres/MXene Composite as a High-Performance Electrocatalyst in Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Due to its affordable cost, excellent redox capability, and relatively effective resistance to corrosion in alkaline environments, spinel Co3O4 demonstrates potential as a viable alternative to noble-metal-based electrocatalysts. Nevertheless, these materials continue to exhibit drawbacks, such as limited active surface area and inadequate intrinsic conductivity. Researchers have been trying to increase the electrical conductivity of Co3O4 nanostructures by integrating them with various conductive substrates due to the low conductivity of pristine Co3O4. In this study, uniform cobalt glycerate solid spheres are first synthesized as the precursor and subsequently transformed into cobalt oxide microspheres by a simple annealing procedure. Co3O4 grown on the surface of Ti3C2Tx-MXene nanosheets (Co3O4/MXene) was successfully synthesized through electrostatic attraction. In order to create a positively charged surface, the Co3O4 microspheres were treated with aminopropyltriethoxysilane. The Co3O4/MXene exhibited a low overpotential of 118 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 113 mV dec-1 for the hydrogen evolution reaction, which is much lower than the pristine Co3O4 at 232 and 195.3 mV dec-1.

Potential application of 2D nano-layered MXene in analysing and remediating endocrine disruptor compounds and heavy metals in water

With the advancement of technologies and growth of the economy, it is inevitable that more complex processes are deployed, producing more heterogeneous wastewater that comes from biomedical, biochemical and various biotechnological industries. While the conventional way of wastewater treatment could effectively reduce the chemical oxygen demand, pH and turbidity of wastewater, trace pollutants, specifically the endocrine disruptor compounds (EDCs) that exist in µg L-1 or ng L-1 have further hardened the detection and removal of these biochemical pollutants. Even in small amounts, EDC could interfere human's hormone, causing severe implications on human body. Hence, this review elucidates the recent insights regarding the effectiveness of an advanced 2D material based on titanium carbide (Ti3C2Tx), also known as MXene, in detecting and removing EDCs. MXene's highly tunable feature also allows its surface chemistry to be adjusted by adding chemicals with different functional groups to adsorb different kinds of EDCs for biochemical pollution mitigation. At the same time, the incorporation of MXene into sample matrices also further eases the analysis of trace pollutants down to ng L-1 levels, thereby making way for a more cleaner and comprehensive wastewater treatment. In that sense, this review also highlights the progress in synthesizing MXene from the conventional method to the more modern approaches, together with their respective key parameters. To further understand and attest to the efficacy of MXene, the limitations and current gaps of this potential agent are also accentuated, targeting to seek resolutions for a more sustainable application.

MXene nanosheets woven in polyacrylonitrile nanofiber yarns aligned spider web as a highly efficient sorbent for in-tube solid phase microextraction of beta-blockers from biofluids

The use of electrospinning has received much attention in the production of nanofiber webs due to its advantages such as flexibility and simplicity. The direct electrospinning of nanofibers in an aligned or twisted form and the production of nanofiber yarns can turn nanofibers into woven fabrics, which leads to an increase in the diversity of nanofiber applications and improves their end-use possibilities. In this work, a victorious nanofiber yarn spinning system was used with the help of a rotating funnel. Yarn formation was studied using a composited polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/MXene polymer solution ejected from two oppositely charged nozzles. Finaly their application for packed-in-tube solid-phase microextraction of β-blocker drugs from biofluids was demonstrated. The separation and quantification of analytes were performed by HPLC-UV instrument. The 3D-yarn PAN/MXene sorbent exhibited high flexibility, porosity, sorbent loading, mechanical stability, and a long lifetime. The characterization of the final nanofiber was carried out utilizing Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscope, energy-dispersive X-ray mapping, transmission electron microscope and X-ray diffraction analysis. Various parameters that affect the extraction efficiency, such as extraction time, pH, ionic strength and flow rate of sample solution, and type, volume and flow rate of eluent, were investigated and optimized. Under optimized conditions, the limits of detection were obtained in the range of 1.5-3.0 μg L-1. This method demonstrated appropriate linearity for β-blockers in the range of 5.0-1000.0 μg L-1, with coefficients of determination greater than 0.990. The inter- and intra-assay precisions (RSDs, for n = 3) are in the range of 2.5-3.5%, and 4.5-5.2%, respectively. Finally, the validated method was put in an application for the analysis of atenolol, propranolol and betaxolol in human urine and saliva samples at different hours and acceptable relative recoveries were obtained in the range of 89.5% to 110.4%.

Label-free MXene-assisted field effect transistor for the determination of IL-6 in patients with kidney transplantation infection

A spiral interdigitated MXene-assisted field effect transistor (SiMFETs) was proposed for determination of IL-6 in patients with kidney transplantation infection. Our SiMFETs demonstrated enhanced IL-6 detection range of 10 fg/mL-100 ng/mL due to the combination of optimized transistor's structure and semiconducting nanocomposites. Specifically, on one hand, MXene-based field effect transistor drastically amplified the amperometric signal for determination of IL-6; on the other hand, the multiple spiral structure of interdigitated drain-source architecture improved the transconductance of FET biosensor. The developed SiMFETs biosensor demonstrated satisfactory stability for 2 months, and favorable reproducibility and selectivity against other biochemical interferences. The SiMFETs biosensor exhibited acceptable correlation coefficient (R2=0.955) in quantification of clinical biosamples. The sensor successfully distinguished the infected patients from the health control with enhanced AUC of 0.939 (sensitivity of 91.7%, specificity of 86.7%). Those merits introduced here may pave an alternative strategy for transistor-based biosensor in point-of-care clinic applications.

Transition metal composites for selective analysis of vitamin B2 in rice by ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A novel amino-functionalized zinc ferrite nanoparticles/MXene (ZnFe₂O₄-NH₂/MXene composite which consist of ZnFe₂O₄-NH₂ and single/few layers MXene was designed and synthesized as an efficient extractant for analysis of vitamin B₂ in rice first combined with ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). As a result, the single/few layer MXene was tightly attached to the spherical ZnFe₂O₄-NH₂ nanoparticles by electrostatic self-assembly interaction, which present large specific surface area and fast mass transfer rate. The relevant experimental parameters, including the pH of the solution, extraction time, adsorbent amount, desorption solvent, desorption solvent volume and desorption time were investigated and optimized. Under optimum conditions, the ZnFe₂O₄-NH₂/MXene composite exhibited excellent selectivity and adsorption capacity for vitamin B₂ through hydrogen bonding interactions and the metal-π complexation interaction. The adsorption kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamic studies were systemically investigated to evaluate the adsorption mechanism and characteristics, which ascribed to chemical adsorption, monolayer adsorption and a spontaneous endothermic process. Furthermore, the performance of the proved method was validated with the good linear correlation coefficient (r = 0.999), low limit of detection (0.86 ng·mL^-1) and the limit of quantification (2.98 ng·mL^-1), satisfactory recoveries (81.7-102.5%) and reasonable accuracy (RSD<7.8%). The theoretical and technological underpinning for investigating the kinship amongst vitamin alterations and the degree of rice storage was set using this suggested approach to assess vitamin B₂ in rice from various years.

First-Principles Study on the Structural, Electronic, and Lithium Storage Properties of Ti3C2T2 (T = O, F, H, OH) MXene

The structures of bare Ti₃C₂ and functionalized Ti₃C₂T₂ (T = O, F, H, OH) MXenes were constructed, and the effect of surface functional groups T₂ (T = O, F, H, OH) on the structural, electronic, and lithium storage properties were investigated by first-principles calculations. The results show that the proximity of surface functional groups will induce some lattice distortion of Ti₃C₂T₂ MXene. The degree of lattice distortion depends mainly on the adsorption position of functional groups and the types of surface functional groups. From the point of view of forming energy, the surface functional groups tend to be located at the CCP site. From the energy band and DOS results, the presence of surface functional groups has a significant effect on the valence band, while it has a slight impact on the conduction band. In terms of lithium storage, lithium atom adsorption starts from the HCP position for bare Ti₃C₂, while functionalized Ti₃C₂T₂ starts from the CCP position. The double-layer lithium storage capacity of bare Ti₃C₂ and Ti₃C₂O₂ were 639.78 mAh/g and 537.22 mAh/g, respectively. And the single-layer lithium storage capacity of Ti₃C₂F₂ was 130.77 mAh/g.

Evaluation of MXene as an adsorbent in dispersive solid phase extraction of several pesticides from fresh fruit juices prior to their determination by HPLC-MS/MS

This study aimed to introduce a dispersive solid phase extraction method based on MXene nanoparticles as a novel sorbent for the simultaneous extraction and determination of twelve pesticides from fresh fruit juices. In the following, a high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was used for their determination in the samples. In this method, two-dimensional nanomaterials of Ti₂AlC were exfoliated in an acidic solution and then they were added into the sample solution. To enhance the sample solution and sorbent contact area, the mixture was vortexed for a few minutes. Then the adsorbed analytes onto the sorbent were eluted using acetone and then analyzed. Under optimal conditions, the calibration curves of the method were linear within the range of 3.0-1000 µg L^-1. The limits of detection, intra- and inter-day relative standard deviations, and extraction recoveries were in the ranges of 0.08-1.0 µg L^-1, 2.5-4.2%, 2.5-5.5%, and 69-75%, respectively. Performing the method verified the presence of some of the analytes in several samples. This method can help to monitor pesticides in juice samples as well as to improve our understanding the safety of foods.

Plugged bifunctional periodic mesoporous organosilica as a high-performance solid phase microextraction coating for improving extraction efficiency of chlorophenols in different matrices

In this study, a sensitive solid phase microextraction (SPME) coating was developed based on two kinds of plugged and non-plugged bifunctional periodic mesoporous organosilicas (BFPMO) with ionic liquid and ethyl units. The extraction efficiency of all plugged and unplugged sorbents was investigated for the extraction of chlorophenols (CPs) in water and honey samples by emphasizing the effect of different physicochemical properties. The separation and determination of the CPs was performed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The extraction results showed that plugged BFPMO coating exhibited outstanding enrichment ability for the extraction of CPs as model analytes with different polarities. This can be attributed to a valuable hydrophobic-hydrophilic balance in the mesochanels of the plugged BFPMO, which is the result of the combination of plug technology and bridged organic groups. Low limits of detection in the range of 5-70 ng L^-1, wide linearity, and good reproducibility (RSD = 8.1-10.1 % for n = 6) under the optimized extraction conditions were achieved. Finally, the BFPMOs coated fiber was successfully used for determination of CPs in real water samples. The relative recoveries for the five CPs were in the range of 92.3-104.0 %, which proved the applicability of the method.

Combination of ultrathin micro-patterned MXene and PEDOT: Poly(styrenesulfonate) enables organic electrochemical transistor for amperometric determination of survivin protein in children osteosarcoma

An ultrathin micro-patterned MXene/PEDOT:PSS-based organic electrochemical transistor biosensor was constructed, which can significantly amplify the amperometric signal and transistor's performance. A novel interdigitated OECTs biosensor has been developed for reliable determination of survivin for the following considerations: (1) The synergistic effect of intercalated MXene and ionic PEDOT:PSS enhanced the mobility and volumetric capacitance of OECTs biosensor. (2) Compared with the best previous literatures, our assay demonstrated enhanced detection limit of survivin down to 10 pg mL^-1, as well as satisfactory selectivity, reproducibility, and reliability. (3) Comparison of OECTs against commercial ELISA kit yielded favorable linearity (Y = 1.0015*X + 0.0039) and correlation coefficient (R² = 0.9717). Those advantages are expected to pave the way to design of an OECTs biosensor with robustness, non-invasiveness, and miniaturization for the point-of-care applications.

Preparation of Ti3 C2 Tx MXene based solid-phase microextraction coating for sensitive determination of polychlorinated biphenyls in environmental water samples

In this study, a new Ti₃ C₂ T_x -coated fiber was synthesized and utilized as coatings for solid-phase microextraction of seven polychlorinated biphenyls. The as-produced multilayered Ti₃ C₂ T_x MXene was characterized by X-ray diffractometer, thermos-gravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive spectroscopy. It is noteworthy that the Ti₃ C₂ T_x showed some attractive features including unique 2D layered structures, large surface area, good hydrophilicity, and rich active recognition sites, endowing it has a high affinity towards the target polychlorinated biphenyls. Subsequently, the affecting parameters on the extraction efficiency of polychlorinated biphenyls were optimized. Under the optimal conditions, a novel method for the analysis of polychlorinated biphenyls in water samples was proposed. The Ti₃ C₂ T_x -coated fiber-based solid-phase microextraction method showed good linearity (r²  > 0.9928), high enrichment factors (268-442), low limits of detection (0.06-0.15 ng/L), and satisfactory repeatability (RSDs < 7.5%) for the polychlorinated biphenyls. The excellent method recoveries were in the range of 90.0-98.4, 92.0-98.2, and 92.0-98.0% for river water, lake water, and tap water samples, respectively. These results suggested that the proposed Ti₃ C₂ T_x -coated fiber-based method represents a promising alternative for the analysis of polychlorinated biphenyls.

Investigation of a QuEChERS Based Method for Determination of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Rat Plasma by GC/MS

Owing to their toxic effects on humans and the environment, sensitive biomonitoring of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is essential and significant. In this work, a sensitive, simple and rapid bioanalytical method was established for the simultaneous determination of thirteen (PAHs) in rat plasma depending on QuEChERS as a preliminary step and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) for identification. QuEChERS procedure was optimized where acetonitrile was employed for plasma samples extraction which was further cleaned using primary secondary amine as the sorbent material. Optimization of GC/MS conditions was performed to produce optimum selectivity of the proposed method. The method was fully validated for rat plasma samples where recoveries, matrix effects, limit of quantitation, linearity, and precision were evaluated. Linearity range was 5.0-100.0 ng/mL for most of the thirteen analytes. Average recoveries of the thirteen PAHs ranged between 85.57 % to 109.64 % in fortified rat plasma with standard deviations (SDs) less than 8.91 except for anthracene which showed 19.24. The limits of detection (LODs) and quantitation (LOQs) for the thirteen compounds ranged from 0.045 to 0.372 ppb and from 0.137 to 1.128 ppb respectively. The established method was successfully implemented to perform a minor toxicokinetic study in intraperitoneally dosed rats (0.25 and 2 mg/kg in vegetable oil). The thirteen PAHs were tracked in rat plasma samples for 6 h after administration, and most of the target compounds were recognized in plasma samples only at the higher dose.

Electrodeposition of poly-ethylenedioxythiophene-graphene oxide nanocomposite in a stainless steel tube for solid-phase microextraction of letrozole in plasma samples

Coated stainless steel was used as an in-tube solid-phase microextraction for the extraction of letrozole from plasma samples. The coating process on the inner surface of the stainless steel was conducted by a simple electrodeposition process. The coated composite was prepared from 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene and graphene oxide. In this composite, graphene oxide acts as an anion dopant and sorbent. The coated nanostructured polymer was characterized using different techniques. The operational factors affecting the extraction process, including pH, adsorption, and desorption time, the recycling flow rate of the sample solution, sample volume, desorption solvent type and its volume, and ionic strength were optimized to achieve the best extraction efficiency of the analyte. The total extraction time including adsorption and desorption steps was about 15.0 min. The developed method demonstrated a linear range of 5.0-1500.0 μg/L with a limit of detection of 1.0 μg/L. The repeatability of the developed extraction approach in terms of intraday, interday, and fiber to fiber was attained in the range of 4.9-8.3%. After finding the optimal conditions, the potential of the described approach for letrozole quantitation was investigated in plasma samples, and satisfactory results were obtained.

Magnetic Cu: CuO-GO nanocomposite for efficient dispersive micro-solid phase extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from vegetable, fruit, and environmental water samples by liquid chromatographic determination

In this research, we presented a magnetic dispersive micro-solid phase extraction (MD-μ-SPE) method coupled with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) based on the use of magnetic Cu: CuO-Graphene Oxide (GO) nanocomposite (Fe₃O₄/Cu: CuO/GO-NC) for the separation and preconcentration of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), i.e. naphthalene (Nap), phenanthrene (Phe), anthracene (Ant), and pyrene (Pyr), in vegetable (onion, tomato, carrot, herb, watermelon, lettuce, eggplant, and chili pepper), fruit (apple, watermelon, and grape), wastewater, and water samples. The MD-μ-SPE of PAHs in matrix samples was carried out, and the impacts of pH, ionic strength, extraction time, temperature, eluent volume, and sorbent mass on the recovery of PAHs were investigated by using Placket-Burman design (PBD). In addition, by using the central composite design (CCD), the best combination of each important variable was measured. Sorbent mass of 14 mg, eluent volume of 200 μL, and 12 min extraction time at the central level of other factors were optimal conditions of pretreatment for the highest extraction recovery (ER%) of trace PAHs. Under the optimal conditions, the method proposed herein provided high enrichment factors ranged from 116.51 to 133.05, good linearity in the range of 10-3800 ng mL^-1 for Pyr, 3.0-3500 ng mL^-1 for Phe, 5.0-3200 ng mL^-1 for Nap, and 5.0-3000 ng mL^-1 for Ant with coefficient of determination (R²) values between 0.9889 and 0.9963, low limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) in the range of 0.015-0.061 and 0.485-2.034 ng mL^-1, respectively, and also satisfactory spiked recoveries (between 95.1% and 106.8%) with the relative standard deviations (RSDs) values in the range of 1.73%-5.62%. The Fe₃O₄/Cu: CuO/GO-NC-based MD-μ-SPE followed by HPLC-UV corroborated promising results for the convenient and effective determination of PAHs in the samples of vegetables, fruits, and environmental water. The results of this study revealed that our developed method is easy, feasible, precise, highly effective, and convenient to operate for the trace analysis of PAHs in different real samples. The extraction recovery was about 90% of the initial recovery after the sorbent usage for three times; therefore, the Fe₃O₄/Cu: CuO/GO-NC can readily be regenerated.