Miniaturized selective pressurized liquid extraction of polychlorinated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers from feedstuffs

Pollution of water in Africa: a review of contaminants and fish as biomonitors and analytical methodologies-the case of Senegal

Environmental pollution is one of the major problems facing human health, ecosystems, and biodiversity. This is particularly the case for water quality in Senegal. Fish can be used as a biomonitor of pollution by accumulating pollutants from the environment through their tissues. Fish is an indispensable element in the assessment of the quality of the environment due to the diversity of biological cycles and their position in the food chain. Fish, which is very sensitive to chemical and bacterial pollution, concentrates pollutants and is a good indicator of water quality. This review presents water pollution in Senegal and the possibility of using fish as an ideal monitoring matrix for marine environments, to detect the concentration of heavy metals and organic pollutants. The different extraction and analytical techniques used for fish biomonitoring will be also described.

Characteristics of a novel on-line micro pressurized liquid extraction method

A novel on-line micro pressurized liquid extraction (μPLE) method is introduced, which directly interfaces miniaturized solid sample preparation with HPLC for fast analysis. The technique employs rapid heating to remove analytes from 5–10 mg samples in typically 20–40 s using only about 300 μL of solvent. The resulting extract is then internally transferred to an HPLC injector for chromatographic analysis. Results show that good analyte recoveries can be achieved, similar to conventional PLE and off-line μPLE approaches, without manual sample handling. For example, 103% ± 3% (n = 4) of the acetylsalicylic acid present in pharmaceutical tablets was extracted into methanol after 20 s at 180 °C. Further, 105% ± 9% (n = 4) of the caffeine present in a green tea sample was extracted into methanol after 40 s at 275 °C. Typical time to analysis was about 95 s total for most samples, and solvents could also be easily alternated during trials to increase extract selectivity. The on-line μPLE system was applied to the extraction of model PAHs from a biochar matrix and was found to extract 97% ± 5% (n = 4) of anthracene present in the sample after a 30 s static and 60 s dynamic extraction at 220 °C. This yield is much better than results obtained by previous approaches and is attributed to the small size, high temperature, low thermal mass, and dynamic flow of the system. Findings indicate that the on-line μPLE system can greatly assist in such extractions and provide a useful method for rapidly preparing solid samples for analysis using little solvent.

Polychlorinated Biphenyl Profile in Polyhydroxy-alkanoates Synthetized from Urban Organic Wastes

The microbial synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from organic wastes is a valuable process to valorize available renewable resources, such as food wastes and biological sludge. Bioplastics find many applications in various sectors, from medical field to food industry. However, persistent organic pollutants could be transferred from wastes to the final product. The present paper demonstrates that the use of municipal wastes in PHA production is safe for the environment and human health and provides a polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) profile in both commercial and waste-based PHA samples. PCB analysis in several PHA samples showed very low concentrations of the target analytes. Commercial PHA samples showed a similar PCB level with respect to PHA samples from municipal waste/sludge and higher than PHA samples from fruit waste. For all analyzed PCBs, detected concentrations were consistently lower than the ones reported in regulatory framework or guidelines.

Fast and environmental-friendly methods for the determination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers and their metabolites in fish tissues and feed

Environmental-friendly, cost-effective and fast methods were developed and validated for the analysis of seven PolyBrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) and eight methoxylated PBDEs (MeO-PBDEs) in three distinct seafood matrices (muscle, liver and plasma) and feed using a Quick, Easy, Cheap, Efficient, Rugged and Safe (QuEChERS) extraction approach for solid samples and a Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction method (DLLME) for plasma. Instrumental analyses were performed with gas chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole mass spectrometry using electron impact source (GC-EI-MS/MS) and negative ion chemical ionization (GC-NICI-MS) to assess BDE-209. Statistical validation showed recoveries for all target substances near 100% with average Relative Standard Deviation (RSD) lower than 9% and recovery standards higher than 65% (average RSD below 20%). Average calculated Method Detection Limits (MDLs) were lower than 65 pg·g^-1 wet weight (WW) for muscle, 5.35 ng·g^-1 WW for liver, 4.50 ng·g^-1 WW for feed, and 0.60 ng·mL^-1 for plasma samples. Quality assurance and quality control practices were comprehensively described. Methods scored high in an analytical Eco-scale, thus being classified as "an excellent green analysis". Finally, real seafood samples collected in local markets and local fishermen were analyzed. Positive samples presented both PBDEs and MeO-PBDEs in safe amounts (0.28-125.80 ng·g^-1 WW) for human consumption.