Preparation of magnetic ordered microporous carbon for the preconcentration of some phthalate esters followed by their determination by HPLC

A magnetic microporous carbon material was synthesized from sucrose and using a zeolite as a hard template, followed by the in situ chemical coprecipitation of Fe(II) and Fe(III) ions to impart magnetism. The resulting material was used as a sorbent for the extraction of the phthalic acid esters (PAEs) dimethyl phthalate, diethyl phthalate, diallyl phthalate and di-n-propyl phthalate. Following desorption with acetone, the PAEs were quantified by HPLC. The effects of the amount of the sorbent, extraction time, sample pH, salt addition and desorption conditions were optimized. Under the optimum conditions, the calibration plots are linear in the 0.1-50 ng mL(-1) concentration range, and the limits of detection (at an S/N of 3) are at 30 pg mL(-1) as demonstrated in the analysis of fruit juice samples.