Determination of ultraviolet filters in water samples by vortex-assisted dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

For the first time, a simple solvent microextraction method termed vortex-assisted liquid-liquid microextraction (VADLLME) coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) has been developed and used for the analysis of six benzophenone ultraviolet (UV) filters (i.e. benzhydrol, 2,4-dihydroxybenzophenone, benzophenone, 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone, ethylhexyl salicylate and homosalate) in water samples. The most favorable extraction variables in the VADLLME process were determined. In the extraction procedure, 40 mu L of tetrachloroethene as extraction solvent were directly injected into a 15-mL centrifuge tube containing 10 mL of aqueous sample, adjusted to pH 4 for VADLLME. After VADLLME, the extract was evaporated under a gentle nitrogen gas stream and then reconstituted with N,O-bis-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA), thus allowing the target analytes to be converted into their trimethylsilyl derivatives to optimize the GC-MS analysis. No centrifugation and disperser solvent were required in this microextraction procedure. Significantly, short extraction time and high extraction efficiency were achieved. This method opens up a potentially new horizon for on-site dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction. Under the optimum conditions, the proposed method provided good enrichment factors up to 310, with relative standard deviations ranging from 6.1 to 12.9%. The limits of quantification were in the range of 20-100 ng/L, depending on the analytes. The linearities were between 0.05 and 10 mu g/L and 0.1 and 10 mu g/L for different UV filters. Finally, the proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of UV filters from spiked genuine water samples and acceptable recoveries over the range of 71.0-120.0% were obtained. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.