Development of a rapid efficient solid-phase microextraction: An overhead rotating flat surface sorbent based 3-D graphene oxide/ lanthanum nanoparticles @ Ni foam for separation and determination of sulfonamides in animal-based food products

Nitrogen-doped hollow quadruple-shelled carbon-silicon nanosphere as a solid-phase microextraction adsorbent for the extraction of 19 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in milk samples

In this study, nitrogen-doped hollow multi-shelled carbon-silicon nanospheres (NSiC-Homs-NS) were prepared using a template method and employed as a coating material for solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fibers. The extraction efficiency of single-, double-, triple-, and quadruple-shelled NSiC-Homs-NS coated fibers for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were investigated, respectively. The NSiC-Homs-NS based SPME fiber coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was applied to detect 19 PAHs in milk samples. The extraction parameters of SPME were optimized using a central composite design methodology. Under the optimized conditions, the established method exhibited good linearity for the PAHs, ranging from 0.03 to 500 ng g-1, with coefficients of determination (r2) between 0.9952 and 0.9983. The limits of detection (S/N of 3) of the PAHs in milk samples ranged from 0.01 to 4.0 ng g-1. The relative standard deviations of the single-fiber repeatability (n = 5) and fiber-to-fiber reproducibility (n = 5) were all less than 12 %. The method recoveries of the PAHs in seven milk samples, evaluated at three different spiking concentrations, ranged from 80.4 % to 119 % with RSDs less than 12 %. The developed method exhibited good repeatability and accuracy.

Preparation and evaluation of a tryptophan based hypercrosslinked porous polymer as an efficient adsorbent for pipette tip solid-phase extraction of sulfonamides

A novel tryptophan-based porous polymer is designed and synthesized via a facile one-step hypercrosslinking polymerization process, and applied as sorbent for extraction of trace sulfonamides in foodstuffs. The developed polymer has high surface area, large conjugate system, and abundant functional groups (e.g., π-π stacking, hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic and electrostatic attraction interactions), which endow it with superior affinity and high adsorption capacity for sulfonamides (16.16-59.29 mg g-1). The optimized SPE method is coupled with HPLC-DAD to create a sensitive and efficient protocol that provides good linearity (R2 ≥ 0.9979), low limits of detection, satisfactory recoveries (92.5-109.5 %) and high precisions (RSDs < 8.24). In addition, the newly proposed method greatly reduces the amount of adsorbent (2.0 mg) and organic solvent (2.0 mL) used. Adsorption kinetics, isotherms, and simulation calculations studies further reveal the presence of monolayer adsorption, chemical adsorption process, and multiple interactions. Thus, this work presents a polymer capable of multiple interactions for the pretreatment of trace sulfonamides in foodstuffs.

A novel differential ratiometric molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor for determination of sulfadiazine in food samples

Herein, we report a novel differential ratiometric molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) electrochemical sensor for sulfadiazine (SDZ). An MIP membrane with double templates, SDZ and propyl gallate (PG), was fabricated on glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified by CuInS2/ZnS nanocomposites. After adding PG in the samples as the reference, the current differences between MIP@CuInS2/ZnS/GCE and non-imprinted polymer@CuInS2/ZnS/GCE at the potentials of 0.18 V (ΔIPG) and 0.92 V (ΔISDZ) were measured. The ratio of ΔISDZ/ΔIPG was used for SDZ determination in the differential and ratiometric dual-mode. The influence of the variations in electrode modification and sample enrichment conditions on the determination of SDZ can be suppressed by 2.8 ∼ 13.2-fold, enhancing the reproducibility and stability of the MIP sensor. The interference level was reduced by one order of magnitude compared with the normal MIP mode. The proposed sensors were used to determine SDZ in food samples, with the detection limit of 2.1 nM.

Simultaneous determination of three biomarkers of non-small cells lung cancer in urine by pipette-tip solid-phase extraction coupled with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry

Simultaneous determination of multiple biomarkers can improve the effectiveness and accuracy of cancer diagnosis. Cortisol, cortisone, and 4-methoxyphenylacetic acid (4-Me) are metabolic biomarker group with high specificity and sensitivity for the diagnosis of non-small cells lung cancer (NSCLC), and the development of their simultaneous determination method is desired. Herein, a simple, sensitive, and low-cost method involving pipette-tip solid-phase extraction (PT-SPE) using anion exchange adsorbent (MAX) coupled with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was developed for the simultaneous determination of three biomarkers (cortisol, cortisone, and 4-Me) in human urine. The sample (0.1 mL), adsorbent (1.5 mg) and organic reagent (3.5 mL) of MAX-PT-SPE are less consumed, and have the advantages of easy access to raw materials, simple assembly, convenient on-site instant extraction, low pollution, and low cost. The limits of detection of the three biomarkers were 0.006-0.024 ng mL-1, the recoveries of three spiked levels (2, 50, and 500 ng mL-1) were 91.0%-99.3%, with the relative standard deviations (RSDs) ≤ 5.9%. Finally, the MAX-PT-SPE-LC-MS/MS method achieved the quantitative analysis of cortisol, cortisone, and 4-Me in urine of different patients of NSCLC. This method is expected to be used in the non-invasive auxiliary diagnosis of NSCLC, and it provides a new strategy for multi-molecular diagnosis and multi-omics combined diagnosis.

An efficient deep eutectic magnetic nano gel for rapid ultrasound-assisted dispersive µ-solid phase extraction of residue of tetracyclines in food samples

In the present study, a magnetic nano gel as the sorbent which is the combination of octatonic acid: cumarin as eutectic solvent and Fe3O4@SiO2 was introduced as the sorbent in ultrasound-assisted dispersive µ-solid phase extraction process coupled with high performance liquid chromatography with photo diode array detector for simultaneous separation and determination of tetracyclines residues in food samples. FT-IR, SEM, VSM were used for the characterization of the synthetized magnetic nano gel. Under obtained optimum conditions, the obtained linear ranges were 1.5-500 (µg L-1), 2.5-750 (µg L-1), 2-750 (µg L-1), and 2.5-500 (µg L-1) for tetracycline, oxytetracycline, chlortetracycline, and doxycycline, respectively. Moreover, the below level of quantification (BLQ) (based on S/N = 3) of 0.47 µg L-1, 0.11 µg L-1, 0.85 µg L-1, 0.66 µg L-1, 0.81 µg L-1 and the limit of quantification (based on S/N = 10) of 1.61, 2.74, 2.23 (µg L-1), and 2.66 were achieved for tetracycline, oxytetracycline, chlortetracycline, and doxycycline, respectively. The intra-day and inter-day precision (%) of the procedure were less than 3.2 and 3.8, respectively. The recoveries over 95% confirmed high sufficiency of the proposed method for application in complex matrices such as honey, milk, and egg.

Graphical abstract

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-023-05798-w.

Cold Plasma-Assisted Extraction of Phytochemicals: A Review

In recent years, there has been growing interest in bioactive plant compounds for their beneficial effects on health and for their potential in reducing the risk of developing certain diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders. The extraction techniques conventionally used to obtain these phytocompounds, however, due to the use of toxic solvents and high temperatures, tend to be supplanted by innovative and unconventional techniques, in line with the demand for environmental and economic sustainability of new chemical processes. Among non-thermal technologies, cold plasma (CP), which has been successfully used for some years in the food industry as a treatment to improve food shelf life, seems to be one of the most promising solutions in green extraction processes. CP is characterized by its low environmental impact, low cost, and better extraction yield of phytochemicals, saving time, energy, and solvents compared with other classical extraction processes. In light of these considerations, this review aims to provide an overview of the potential and critical issues related to the use of CP in the extraction of phytochemicals, particularly polyphenols and essential oils. To review the current knowledge status and future insights of CP in this sector, a bibliometric study, providing quantitative information on the research activity based on the available published scientific literature, was carried out by the VOSviewer software (v. 1.6.18). Scientometric analysis has seen an increase in scientific studies over the past two years, underlining the growing interest of the scientific community in this natural substance extraction technique. The literature studies analyzed have shown that, in general, the use of CP was able to increase the yield of essential oil and polyphenols. Furthermore, the composition of the phytoextract obtained with CP would appear to be influenced by process parameters such as intensity (power and voltage), treatment time, and the working gas used. In general, the studies analyzed showed that the best yields in terms of total polyphenols and the antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of the phytoextracts were obtained using mild process conditions and nitrogen as the working gas. The use of CP as a non-conventional extraction technique is very recent, and further studies are needed to better understand the optimal process conditions to be adopted, and above all, in-depth studies are needed to better understand the mechanisms of plasma-plant matrix interaction to verify the possibility of any side reactions that could generate, in a highly oxidative environment, potentially hazardous substances, which would limit the exploitation of this technique at the industrial level.

Recent Trends in Graphene-Based Sorbents for LC Analysis of Food and Environmental Water Samples

This review provides an overview of recent advancements in applying graphene-based materials as sorbents for liquid chromatography (LC) analysis. Graphene-based materials are promising for analytical chemistry, including applications as sorbents in liquid chromatography. These sorbents can be functionalized to produce unique extraction or stationary phases. Additionally, graphene-based sorbents can be supported in various materials and have consequently been applied to produce various devices for sample preparation. Graphene-based sorbents are employed in diverse applications, including food and environmental LC analysis. This review summarizes the application of graphene-based materials in food and environmental water analysis in the last five years (2019 to 2023). Offline and online sample preparation methods, such as dispersive solid phase microextraction, stir bar sorptive extraction, pipette tip solid phase extraction, in-tube solid-phase microextraction, and others, are reviewed. The review also summarizes the application of the columns produced with graphene-based materials in separating food and water components and contaminants. Graphene-based materials have been reported as stationary phases for LC columns. Graphene-based stationary phases have been reported in packed, monolithic, and open tubular columns and have been used in LC and capillary electrochromatography modes.

Betalains as promising natural colorants in smart/active food packaging

Betalains are water-soluble nitrogen pigments with beneficial effects, including antioxidant, antimicrobial, and pH-indicator properties. The development of packaging films incorporated with betalains has received increasing attention because of pH-responsive color-changing properties in the colorimetric indicators and smart packaging films. As such, intelligent and active packaging systems based on biodegradable polymers containing betalains have been recently developed as eco-friendly packaging to enhance the quality and safety of food products. Betalains could generally improve the functional properties of packaging films, such as higher water resistance, tensile strength, elongation at break, and antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. These effects are dependent on betalain composition (about its source and extraction), content, and the kind of biopolymer, film preparation method, food samples, and storage time. This review focused on betalains-rich films as pH- and ammonia-sensitive indicators and their applications as smart packaging to monitor the freshness of protein-rich foods such as shrimp, fish, chicken, and milk.

Removal of lead ions from wastewater using magnesium sulfide nanoparticles caged alginate microbeads

In this study, an adsorbent made of alginate (Alg) caged magnesium sulfide nanoparticles (MgS) microbeads were used to treat lead ions (Pb²⁺ ions). The MgS nanoparticles were synthesized at low temperatures, and Alg@MgS hydrogel microbeads were made by the ion exchange process of the composite materials. The newly fabricated Alg@MgS was characterized by XRD, SEM, and FT-IR. The adsorption conditions were optimized for the maximum removal of Pb²⁺ ions by adjusting several physicochemical parameters, including pH, initial concentration of lead ions, Alg/MgS dosage, reaction temperature, equilibration time, and the presence of co-ions. This is accomplished by removing the maximum amount of Pb²⁺ ions. Moreover, the adsorbent utilized more than six times with a substantial amount (not less than 60%) of Pb²⁺ ions was eliminated. Considering the ability of sodium alginate (SA) for excellent metal chelation and controlled nanosized pore structure, the adsorption equilibrium of Alg@MgS can be reached in 60 min, and the highest adsorption capacity for Pb²⁺ was 84.7 mg/g. The sorption mechanism was explored by employing several isotherms. It was found that the Freundlich model fits the adsorption process quite accurately. The pseudo-second-order model adequately described the adsorption kinetics.

Sulfur-Doped Binary Layered Metal Oxides Incorporated on Pomegranate Peel-Derived Activated Carbon for Removal of Heavy Metal Ions

In this study, a novel biomass adsorbent based on activated carbon incorporated with sulfur-based binary metal oxides layered nanoparticles (SML-AC), including sulfur (S2), manganese (Mn), and tin (Sn) oxide synthesized via the solvothermal method. The newly synthesized SML-AC was studied using FTIR, FESEM, EDX, and BET to determine its functional groups, surface morphology, and elemental composition. Hence, the BET was performed with an appropriate specific surface area for raw AC (356 m2·g−1) and modified AC-SML (195 m2·g−1). To prepare water samples for ICP-OES analysis, the suggested nanocomposite was used as an efficient adsorbent to remove lead (Pb2+), cadmium (Cd2+), chromium (Cr3+), and vanadium (V5+) from oil-rich regions. As the chemical structure of metal ions is influenced by solution pH, this parameter was considered experimentally, and pH 4, dosage 50 mg, and time 120 min were found to be the best with high capacity for all adsorbates. At different experimental conditions, the AC-SML provided a satisfactory adsorption capacity of 37.03−90.09 mg·g−1 for Cd2+, Pb2+, Cr3+, and V5+ ions. The adsorption experiment was explored, and the method was fitted with the Langmuir model (R2 = 0.99) as compared to the Freundlich model (R2 = 0.91). The kinetic models and free energy (<0.45 KJ·mol−1) parameters demonstrated that the adsorption rate is limited with pseudo-second order (R2 = 0.99) under the physical adsorption mechanism, respectively. Finally, the study demonstrated that the AC-SML nanocomposite is recyclable at least five times in the continuous adsorption−desorption of metal ions.

Titanium lanthanum three oxides decorated magnetic graphene oxide for adsorption of lead ions from aqueous media

The current study presents a viable and straightforward method for synthesizing titanium lanthanum three oxide nanoparticles (TiLa) and their decoration onto the ferrous graphene oxide sheets to produce FeGO-TiLa as efficient magnetic adsorbent. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and vibration sample magnetometer (VSM) were used to evaluate the physical and chemical properties of the produced nanocomposites. The FeGO-TiLa was used to enhance the removal of lead ions from aqueous solution. The FeGO-TiLa nanocomposite exhibited a much higher removal efficiency (93%) for lead ions than pure TiLa nanoparticles (81%) and magnetic graphene oxide (74%). The influence of FeGO-TiLa dosage, contact time, solution pH, solution temperature, and starting quantity on the lead ions was evaluated and adjusted. The investigations demonstrated that a pH 6 with 40 mg adsorbent resulted in >91% removal of lead ions at ambient temperature after 120 min. Isotherm models were used to analyze experimental results, and Langmuir model fitted the data well as compared Freundlich model with a maximum adsorption capacity of 109.89 mg g^-1. Kinetic and studies are performed the lead adsorption over FeGO-TiLa follow pseudo-second-order rate. Langmuir and Free energy suggested the lead ions uptake with FeGO-TiLa was monolayer and physical adsorption mechnaism, respectively. Finally, the FeGO-TiLa nanocompoiste can be used as an alternative adsorbent for water remediation.

Analytical perspective and environmental remediation potentials of magnetic composite nanosorbents

The synthesis and application of magnetic nanosorbents to remove emerging pollutants have been considered the best environmental remediation and sustainability option. Incorporating magnetism shortens the treatment time and allows the sorbent to be recovered quickly using external magnetic with many cycles. The implementation of magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) using magnetic materials of different shapes, sizes, and surface morphology can be a valuable tool in applying materials to prepare analytical samples. In MSPE applications, materials with strong magnetic domain can be used as precursors for constructing magnetic composite as a promising sorbent. This article focuses on the most recent and exceptional applications of magnetic adsorbents for preconcentration and removal purposes. Magnetic adsorbents, such as nanoparticles (NPs), foam, sponges, nanocomposites, hydrogels, and beads with multifunctional attributes have been comprehensively studied in terms of preparation procedures, limitations, advantages, and interactions between pollutants and magnetic composites. The role of magnetic sorbents in sample preparation methods, such as simple solid-phase extraction and microextraction, as well as sorptive extraction using a stir bar, was also examined. The use of magnetic adsorbents with analytical techniques, such as solid-phase extraction and solid-phase microextraction improves the method for preparing samples concerning the influential role of magnetic adsorbents. Towards the end, promising features and future outlook are also directed.

Headspace Extraction of Chlorobenzenes from Water Using Electrospun Nanofibers Fabricated with Calix[4]arene-Doped Polyurethane-Polysulfone

Chlorobenzenes (CBs) are persistent and potentially have a carcinogenic effect on mammals. Thus, the determination of CBs is essential for human health. Hence, in this study, novel polyurethane−polysulfone/calix[4]arene (PU-PSU/calix[4]arene) nanofibers were synthesized using an electrospinning approach over in-situ coating on a stainless-steel wire. The nanosorbent was comprehensively characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) techniques. The SEM analysis depicted the nanofiber’s unique morphology and size distribution in the range of 50−200 nm. To determine the levels of 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene, 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene, and 1,2,3,4-tetrachlorobenzene in water samples, freshly prepared nanosorbent was employed using headspace-solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) in combination with gas chromatography micro electron capture detector (GC-µECD). Other calixarenes, such as sulfonated calix[4]arene, p-tert-calixarene, and calix[6]arene were also examined, and among the fabricated sorbents, the PU−PSU/calix[4]arene showed the highest efficiency. The key variables of the procedure, including ionic strength, extraction temperature, extraction duration, and desorption conditions were examined. Under optimal conditions, the LOD (0.1−1.0 pg mL−1), the LDR (0.4−1000 pg mL−1), and the R2 > 0.990 were determined. Additionally, the repeatability from fiber to fiber and the intra-day and inter-day reproducibility were determined to be 1.4−6.0, 4.7−10.1, and 0.9−9.7%, respectively. The nanofiber adsorption capacity was found to be 670−720 pg/g for CBs at an initial concentration of 400 pg mL−1. A satisfactory recovery of 80−106% was attained when the suggested method’s application for detecting chlorobenzenes (CBs) in tap water, river water, sewage water, and industrial water was assessed.

Heterogeneous adsorbent based on CeZrO2 nanoparticles doped magnetic graphene oxide used for vortex assisted magnetic dispersive solid phase extraction of erythromycin in chicken

A simple, fast, and efficient method of vortex assisted magnetic dispersive solid phase extraction for separation and pre-concentration of erythromycin in chicken samples prior to high LC-UV determination has been developed. The novel heterogeneous CeZrO₂ nanoparticles doped magnetic graphene oxide, for use as an efficient nanosorbent, was synthetised and applied for the adsorption of erythromycin. The synthetised nanosorbent was characterised using both Fourier-transform infra-red (FT-IR) and energy dispersive X-Ray (EDX) spectroscopy together with field emission scanning electron microscopy-EDX. To obtain the best extraction condition and maximum extraction efficiency of erythromycin, the effect of important parameters including pH, amount of sorbent, vortexing time, ionic strength, sample volume, and desorption conditions were investigated. At optimum conditions, a linear range of 0.25-300 µg kg^-1, LOD (S/N = 3) of 0.079 µg kg^-1, and LOQ (S/N = 10) of 0.270 µg kg^-1 were obtained. The precision of the method was established as having an RSD (%) at 100 µg kg^-1 of erythromycin for seven replicates of 2.6% and 3.2% for the intra-day and the inter-day, respectively. Recoveries over 94.0% confirmed a high capability of the proposed method for separation and determination of erythromycin residues in chicken being one of the most important animal products.