Use of Ionic Liquid-filled Semipermeable Membrane for Extraction of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Water

A novel and facile sample preparation method was developed for the extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in aqueous sample solution using 1-butyl-3- methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C4MIM][PF6]) – filled semipermeable membrane. For 24 hrs extraction of naphthalene, 1-methylnaphthalene, 2-chloronaphthalene, phenanthrene, the result showed that the extraction efficiency, correlation coefficient (R2) and RSD (n=5) were in the range of 67-102 %, 0.9870-0.9962, and 2.1-5.3 %, respectively.

Highly selective extraction of aromatics from aliphatics by using metal chloride-based ionic liquids

The separation of aromatics from aliphatics is essential for achieving maximum exploitation of oil resources in the petrochemical industry.In this study,a series of metal chloride-based ionic liquids were prepared and their performances in the separation of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydronaphthalene(tetralin)/dodecane and tetralin/decalin systems were studied.Among these ionic liquids,1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrachloroferrate([EMIM][FeCl_(4)])with the highest selectivity was used as the extractant.Density functional theory calculations showed that[EMIM][FeCl_(4)]interacted more strongly with tetralin than with dodecane and decalin.Energy decomposition analysis of[EMIM][FeCl_(4)]-tetralin indicated that electrostatics and dispersion played essential roles,and induction cannot be neglected.The van der Waals forces was a main effect in[EMIM][FeCl_(4)]-tetralin by independent gradient model analysis.The tetralin distribution coefficient and selectivity were 0.8 and 110,respectively,with 10%(mol)tetralin in the initial tetralin/dodecane system,and 0.67 and 19.5,respectively,with 10%(mol)tetralin in the initial tetralin/decalin system.The selectivity increased with decreasing alkyl chain length of the extractant.The influence of the extraction temperature,extractant dosage,and initial concentrations of the system components on the separation performance were studied.Recycling experiments showed that the regenerated[EMIM][FeCl_(4)]could be used repeatedly.

Determination of Trace Amount of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Urban Sewage by Solid-phase Extraction Coupled with High Performance Liquid Chromatograph

[Method] This study aimed to determine trace amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) in urban sewage by using solid-phase extraction(SPE) coupled with high performance liquid chromatograph(HPLC).[Method] From the aspects of solid-phase extraction column,elution solvent,elution volume,elution speed and so forth,the test conditions of SPE-HPLC method were optimized,and trace amount of PAHs in urban sewage was determined.[Result] The optimized solid-phase extraction conditions were SUPELCLEAN LC-18 solid-phase extraction column,methylene dichloride as elution solvent,15 ml elution volume,2 ml/min elution speed,5 ml/min loading speed,1 000 ml water with 200 ml methanol loading volume.Under the optimized extraction conditions,the recovery was high,namely 76.3%-105.2%;relative standard deviation was 3.8%-6.0%,showing good precision;detection limit was low,only 0.000 8-0.048 0 μg/L.[Conclusion] This method is user-friendly,with high sensitivity and good precision,and suitable for continuous determination of a large volume of water samples.

Optimization of Ultrasonic Extraction and Clean-up Protocol for the Determination of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Marine Sediments by High-performance Liquid Chroma-tography Coupled with Fluorescence Detection

The procedures of ultrasonic extraction and clean-up were optimized for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in marine sediments. Samples were ultrasonically extracted, and the extracts were purified with a miniaturized silica gel chromatographic column and analyzed with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a fluorescence detector. Ultrasonication with methanol-dichloromethane (2:1, v/v) mixture gave higher extraction efficiency than that with dichloromethane. Among the three elution solvents used in clean-up step, dichloromethane-hexane (2:3, v/v) mixture was the most satisfactory. Under the optimized conditions, the recoveries in the range of 54.82% to 94.70% with RSDs of 3.02% to 23.22% for a spiked blank, and in the range of 61.20% to 127.08% with RSDs of 7.61% to 26.93% for a spiked matrix, were obtained for the 15 PAHs studied, while the recoveries for a NIST standard reference SRM 1941b were in the range of 50.79% to 83.78% with RSDs of 5.24% to 21.38%. The detection limits were between 0.75 ng L-1 and 10.99 ng L-1for different PAHs. A sample from the Jiaozhou Bay area was examined to test the established methods.

Cloud Point Extraction of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Aqueous Solution with Silicone Surfactants

Cloud point extraction （CPE） processes with two silicone surfactants, Dow Coming DC-190 and DC-193, were studied as preconcentration and treatment for the water polluted by three trace polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs）： anthracene, phenanthrene and pyrene. For all cases, the volumes of surfactant-rich phase obtained by two silicone surfactants were very small, i.e. a lower water content in the surfactant-rich phase was obtained. For example, less than 3% of the initial solution was obtained in a 1% （by mass） surfactant solution, which was much smaller than that of TX-114 in the same surfactant concentration. And TX-114 is known as a high compact surfactant-rich phase among most nonionic surfactants, thus the comparison showed that an excellent enrichment was ensured in the analysis application by the CPE process with the silicone surfactants, and the lower water content obtained in the surfactant-rich phase is also important in the large scale water treatment. The influences of additives and phase separation methodology on the recovery of PAHs were discussed. Comparing with DC-193, DC-190 has a lower cloud point and a higher recovery （near 100%） of all the three PAHs in same surfactant concentration, which was required for application as a preconcentration process prior to HPLC system. However the DC-190 solution is hard to be phase separated only by heating, whereas DC-193 has a relative higher phase separating speed by heating, but a high cloud point （around 360K） limits its application. Due to the phase separation by heating is the only method of CPE suitable to the large scale water treatment, the mixtures of two silicone surfacrants solutions were investigated in this study. A solution containing 1% of mixed DC-190 and DC-193 （in the ratio of 90 ： 10） removed anthracene, phenanthrene and pyrene near 100% with a relative low cloud point and quick phase separating speed.

Fast analysis of derivatives of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soil by ultra-high performance supercritical fluid chromatography after supercritical fluid extraction enrichment

An efficient and environment-friendly method for simultaneous determination of 13 typical derivatives of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon(PAH)in petroleum-polluted soil with nitro-,oxy-and alkylfunctional group was developed using supercritical fluid extraction(SFE)followed by ultra-high performance supercritical fluid chromatography(UHPSFC).Parameters of UHPSFC,including type of stationary phase and mobile phase modifiers,gradient elution process,backpressure,column temperature,and the flow rate of mobile phase,were systematically optimized,achieving a fast separation within4.2 min.Limits of detection(LOD)were 0.005-0.1μg mL^(-1)or 0.1-2.0 ng g^(-1),respectively,with a good repeatability(RSD<5.0%).Before UHPSFC-PDA analysis,the PAH-derivatives in soil samples were effectively enriched in 15.0 min using SFE with an online carbon nanotubes(CNTs)collection trap.The soil samples were analyzed by the proposed method and the results were verified by GC-MS.Thus,SFE equipped with an online CNTs trap followed by UHPSFC-PDA analysis,which only consumed about2.0 mL organic solvent for a whole run,has been demonstrated to be an efficient way for screening and quantitative analysis of trace-level PAH-derivatives in soil samples.

Ultrasonic wave extraction and simultaneous analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and phthalic esters in soil

A method is developed for detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) and Phthalic Acid Esters(PAEs) in soil samples. Ultrasonic Wave Extraction under airtight circumstances is adopted to extract the analytes in soil samples with n-hexane–acetone(V:V=1:1) as extraction solvent. This method has several advantages, including high extraction efficiency, short time, convenience and simplicity. It can be used to detect polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) and Phthalic Acid Esters(PAEs) in soil.

Effect of the Structure of Cations and Anions of Ionic Liquids on Separation of Aromatics from Hydrocarbon Mixtures

The effects of the structure of typical cations and anions of ionic liquids on the separation of benzene and toluene from aromatic/paraffin mixtures were studied. The .results showed that the corresponding separation factors were considerably larger than those of the traditional solvents （Benzene＋Hexane＋sulfolane）, and that the ionic liquids could be used as novel solvents for the separation of aromatics from hydrocarbon mixtures. The key parameters governing the ability of ionic liquids for separating aromatics from hydrocarbon sources were investigated. It was found that the effectiveness of the ionic liquids, based on the same anion, changed in the cation order of [BIqu]^＋〈 [BPy]^＋〈 [BMIM]^＋. The selectivity of the ionic liquid toward aromatics decreased apparently with the increasing length of the substituted alkyl chain of its cationic head ring. The separation factors, based on the same cation, changed in the anion order of [Tf2N]^-〈[PF6]^-〈[BF4]^-〈[C2H5SO4]^-. The solubilities of the aromatics were greater in the ionic liquids based on the former three anions than that in the ionic liquids involving [C2H5SO4]^-.

Preparation of Amino-functionalized Guanidinium Ionic Liquid-Modified Magnetic Materials and Application in Solid-Phase Extraction of Pollutants in Water

In the present work,a novel amino-functionalized hexaalkylguanidinium chloride ionic liquid was prepared and grafted on the surface of magnetic materials through polyethyleneimine to enrich polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in water in combination with HPLC equipped with an ultraviolet detector.The effect of several parameters on the extraction efficiency was investigated,including the desorption solvent,the amounts of sorbents,the extraction time,the desorption time and the salt amount.Under the optimized conditions,the method validation exhibited good linearity with correlation coefficients above 0.994 in the range of 0.2-300 ng/mL and low limits of detection and quantification of 0.05 and 0.2 ng/mL,respectively.Besides,relative recoveries were in the range of 80-120%,and the intra-day and inter-day repeatability were good with the relative standard deviations of less than 20%.Finally,the guanidinium ionic liquid modified magnetic materials were applied for the extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from real water samples to demonstrate the utility,and the results show that the proposed method has good prospect for effective enrichment and determination of pollutants in water.

Extraction of the Residual Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the Long-term Contaminated Soil in the Field

[Objective] The aim of this study was to find a better method to exactly quantify the residual polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons（PAHs）in the long-term contaminated soil in the field so as to provide basis for the remediation for PAHs contaminated soil.[Method]The comparisons of soxhlet extraction,ultrasonic extraction and shaking extraction were studied in the agricultural soil irrigated with oil sewage over a long period of time.[Result]The total PAHs extracted by soxhlet extraction were the highest（6 873.7 μg/kg）,followed by shaking extraction（6 698.8 μg/kg）and ultrasonic extraction（5 737.6 μg/kg）.Among these methods,the highest extracted 4 and 6 rings PAHs were in the soxhlet extraction,the highest extracted 2 and 5 rings PAHs were in the shaking extraction,and the highest extracted 3 rings PAHs were in the ultrasonic extraction.[Conclusion]This study had provided basis for the selection of the assessment method of residual PAHs in the field soil.

Determination of particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry after molecularly imprinted polymer extraction

A solid phase extraction procedure(SPE)is described for the quantitative analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)in atmospheric particulate matter(PM),as ubiquitous environmental pollutants routinely measured in air qualitymonitoring.A SPE cartridge was used based on a molecular imprinted polymer(MIP-SPE)properly tailored for selective retention of PAHs with 4 and more benzene fused rings.The performance of the clean-up procedure was evaluated with the specific concern of selective purification towards saturated hydrocarbons,which are the PM components mostly interfering GC analysis of target PAHs.Under optimized operative conditions,the MIP-SPE provided analyte recovery close to 95%for heavier PAHs,from benzo(α)pyrene to benzo(ghi)perylene,and close to 90%for four benzene rings PAHs,with good reproducibility(RSDs:2.5%-5.9%).Otherwise,C_(17)-C_(32) n-alkanes were nearly completely removed.The proposed method was critically compared with Solid Phase Micro Extraction(SPME)using a polyacrylate fiber.Both methods were successfully applied to the analysis of ambient PM2.5 samples collected at an urban polluted site.Between the two procedures,the MIP-SPE provided the highest recovery(R%≥93%)for PAHs with 5 and more benzene rings,but lower for lighter PAHs.In contrast,SPME showed a mean acceptable R%value(∼80%)for all the investigated PAHs,except for the heaviest PAHs in the most polluted samples(R%:110%-138%),suggesting an incomplete purification from the interfering n-hydrocarbons.

TiO_2 nanotubes as solid-phase extraction adsorbent for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in environmental water samples

An analytical method based on TiO2 nanotubes solid-phase extraction （SPE） combined with gas chromatography （GC） was established for the analysis of seven polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs）： acenaphtylene, acenaphthene, anthracene, fluorene, phenanthrene, fluoranthene and pyrene. Factors affecting the extraction efficiency including the eluent type and its volume, adsorbent amount, sample volume, sample pH and sample flow rate were optimized. The characteristic data of analytical performance were determined to investigate the sensitivity and precision of the method. Under the optimized extraction conditions, the method showed good linearity in the range of 0.01-0.8 μg/mL, repeatability of the extraction （RSD were between 6.7% and 13.5%, n = 5） and satisfactory detection limits （0.017-0.059 μg/mL）. The developed method was successfully applied to the analysis of surface water （tap, river and dam） samples. The recoveries of PAHs spiked in environmental water samples ranged from 90% to 100%. All the results indicated the potential application of titanate nanotubes as solid-phase extraction adsorbents to pre-treat water samples.

On-line enrichment and determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in atmospheric particulates using high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence as detector

Seven polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs） in atmospheric particulates were determinated by high performance liquid chromatography （HPLC） with fluorescence detector using direction injection and an on-line enrichment trap column. The method simplified the sample pretreatment, saved time and increased the efficiency. With the on-line trap column, PAHs were separated availably even underground injecting 1.0 ml sample with relatively high column efficiency. The recoveries of the seven PAHs were from 85% to 120% for spiked atmospheric particulate sample. The limit of detection was 15.3-39.6 ng/L （S/N=3.3）. There were good linear correlations between the peak areas and concentrations of the seven kinds of PAHs in the range of 1-50 ng/ml with the correlation coefficients over 0.9970. Furthermore, it also indicated that the method is available to determine PAHs in atmospheric particulates well.

Liquid-liquid interfacial tension of equilibrated mixtures of ionic liquids and hydrocarbons

Ionic liquids are possible alternative solvents for the separation of aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons by liquid-liquid extrac- tion. Interfacial tension is an important property to consider in the design of liquid-liquid extraction processes. In this work, the liquid-liquid interfacial tension and the mutual solubility at 25 ℃ have been measured for a series of biphasic, equilibrated mixtures of an ionic liquid and a hydrocarbon. In particular, the ionic liquids 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium bis（trifluorome- thanesulfonyl）imide （with the alkyl substituent being ethyl, hexyl or decyl）, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium ethylsulfate, and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium methanesulfonate have been selected, as well as the hydrocarbons benzene, hexane, ethylben- zene, and octane. The selected sets of ionic liquids and hydrocarbons allow the analysis of the influence of a series of effects on the interfacial tension. For example, the interfacial tension decreases with an increase in the length of the alkyl substituent chain of the cation or with an increase of the degree of charge delocalisation in the anion of the ionic liquid. Also, the interfa- cial tension with the aromatic hydrocarbons is markedly lower than that with the aliphatic hydrocarbons. A smaller effect is caused by variation of the size of the hydrocarbon. Some of the observed trends can be explained from the mutual solubility of the hydrocarbon and the ionic liquid.

Triacontyl modified silica gel as a sorbent for the preconcentration of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in aqueous samples prior to gas chromatographic-mass spectrometry determination

Triacontyl modified silica gel as a sorbent coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS) was developed to determine EPA prior 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) in water samples.Various parameters of solid-phase extraction such as organic modifier solvent,eluent,sample flow rate and volume were optimized.The developed method was found to yield a linear calibration curve in the concentration range of 0.05-8μg/L with respect to naphthalene,acenaphthylene,acenaphthene and 0.01-8μg/L for dibenz[a,h]anthracene and 0.05-14μg/L for fluorene,phenanthrene,anthracene and 0.01-14μg/L for the rest of analytes.Furthermore,the good accuracy and repeatability of the method made sure the requirements for achieving reliable analysis of PAHs in the environmental water samples,and the recoveries of optimal method were in the range of 80-120%except to higher volatility PAHs.C_(30)-bonded silica was proved to be an efficient sorbent for extraction of high molecular weight PAHs.

Vapor-Liquid Equilibrium of Toluene-Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon System in Sub- and Supercritical State

The phase behaviors of toluene/polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon mixture systems were investigated with a continuous-flow type apparatus at 573.2, 598.2, 623.2 and 648.2 K, while the pressure changed from 1 to 5MPa. The pseudo-binary phase behaviors were predicted with the Peng-Robinson equation of state with interaction parameters between toluene and pseudo-components considered. The phase diagrams of the system have been classified following the category of phase boundary diagram models. The extraction selectivity and efficiency of tolu-ene as a solvent was discussed by comparing with that of hexane. The prediction model for selectivity was also suggested.

Modified Coated Copper Wire as a New Fiber for SPME-GC Analysis of Some Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons

In this study for the first time, a novel copper Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) fiber has been introduced for removal of naphthalene, phenanthrene and anthracene from aqueous solution. Copper was used as a solid support, which was at first coated by 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysi- lane. A stationary phase of oxidized multi walled carbon nanotube (MWCNTs)) was bonded to the surface of the copper wire. The developed SPME was characterized by IR and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and coupled to gas chromatography for separation of the analytes. Stability of the fiber, the effect of coating thickness and recovery time were optimized. The MWCNTs film thickness was about 5 μm which was perfect for a rapid mass transfer. The detection limits were at the range of 0.005 to 0.1 μg·L-1. The calibration curves were linear R2 > 0.9813 in the range of 0.01 to 5 μg·L-1. The method has been successfully applied for real samples with standard addition of 5 μL-1 of each sample. Stability study of the fiber to acid and alkali shows that it can be used for more than 50 times.

Exposure of university students to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons measured from urinary monohydroxy metabolites

Internal exposure of university students to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was assessed through urinary PAHs metabolites. Eight monohydroxylated PAHs (OH-PAHs) were detected with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The detectable frequencies were 59%-100% for different analytes. Major components in the subjects’ urine were 2-hydroxynaphthalene (2-OHNap, 0.60 μg/mmol creatinine), followed by hydroxyphenanthrene (ΣOH-Phe, 0.38 μg/mmol creatinine) and 2-hydroxyfluorene (2-OHFlu, 0.25 μg/mmol creatinine). Excretion of 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHPyr, 0.08 μg/mmol creatinine) was almost one order of magnitude lower than the 2-OHNap level in the urine samples. Phenanthrene can be metabolized to five monohydroxy metabolites in human urine. In the present study, 1-or 9-hydroxyphenanthrene (1-or 9-OHPhe) was the dominant component (79%), followed by 2-+3-OHPhe (18%) and 4-OHPhe (3%). The study indicates that 1-OHPyr may not be a good marker for total PAHs exposure, and monitoring of 2-OHNap, 2-OHFlu, 1-or 9-OHPhe and 1-OHPyr as multiple biomarkers are more suitable than only using 1-OHPyr. The levels of OH-PAHs detected in urines of students living in Shanghai are higher those of people in other countries or regions. The concentrations of urine OH-PAHs are directly related to the exposure to PAHs in the environment, indicating that Shanghai residents are at high health risk.

Inhibitory effect of coriander(Coriandrum sativum L.)extract marinades on the formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in roasted duck wings

Coriander(Coriandrum sativum L.)is recognized for its antioxidant property,as a kind of natural phenolic-rich ingredient.Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs)present a class of heat-driven hazards in foods,especially the processed meat.In this study,the effect of coriander root and leaf extract on the formation and inhibition of PAH8 in roasted duck wings was firstly investigated.Coriander root extract(CRE)and coriander leaf extract(CLE)with five concentration groups(200,400,600,800,1000 mg/L)were prepared respectively to marinate the duck wings.CRE marinade exhibited greater inhibitory effect on PAH8 formation in roasted duck wings that ranged from 65.0%-87.4%.The electron spin resonance study indicated a significantly positive correlation between PAH8 and free radical level,suggesting the participation of radicals in PAHs formation.Also,it was speculated that the inhibitory effect on PAH8 was related to the phenolic compounds identified in coriander marinades.CRE made greater inhibitory effect on the formation of PAH8 and could be considered as a kind of natural source to mitigate PAHs in heat-processed meat products.

Association between polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and human rectal tumor or liver cancer

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in rectal carcinoma and hepatocarcinoma genesis. Methods: The PAHs in the human rectal cancer and liver cancer tissues, the adjacent tissues and homologous tissues without rectal cancer or liver cancer were extracted by ultrasonic wave. The extracts were then cleaned up and enriched by solid phase extraction, analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence spectroscopy. Results: Four kinds of PAHs were detected in human rectal and hepatic tissues. The contents of pyrene, 2-methylanthracene and benzo (a) pyrene in both rectal cancer tissues and adjacent homologous tissues were higher than rectal tissues without rectal cancer, the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The contents of phenanthrene in the three kind of tissue were not significant (P > 0.05). The differences of the content of each PAHs between rectal cancer and adjacent tissue were not significant (P > 0.05). The contents of the four PAHs in the three kinds of liver tissues were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Conclusion: PAHs are found in human rectal tissues or hepatic tissues. The contents of PAHs in human rectal tissue may have an effect on the occurrence of human rectal cancer while the contents of PAHs in human hepatic tissues may have not ones.