Novel magnetic SPE method based on carbon nanotubes filled with cobalt ferrite for the analysis of organochlorine pesticides in honey and tea

A novel magnetic SPE method based on magnetic cobalt ferrite filled carbon nanotubes (MFCNTs) coupled with GC with electron capture detection was developed to determine organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in tea and honey samples. The MFCNTs were prepared through the capillarity of carbon nanotubes for drawing mixed cobalt and iron nitrates solution into their inner cavity followed by heating to 550 degrees C under Ar to form the cobalt ferrite nanoparticles. SEM images provided visible evidence of the filled cobalt ferrite nanoparticles in the multiwalled nanotubes. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicated no adhesion of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles and metal salts on the outer surface of the MFCNTs. Eight OCPs were extracted with the MFCNTs. The enrichment factors were in the range of 52-68 for eight OCPs. The LODs for the eight OCPs were in the range of 1.3-3.6 ng/L. The recoveries of the OCPs for honey and tea samples were 83.2-128.7 and 72.6-111.0%, respectively. The RSDs for these samples were below 6.8%. The new method is particularly suited to extract nonpolar and weakly polar analytes from a complex matrix and could potentially be extended to other target analytes.