Strategies to improve the challenges of classic dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction for determination of the parabens in personal care products-One step closer to green analytical chemistry

Gas flow-assisted dispersive liquid-phase microextraction based on deep eutectic solvent was used to determine parabens in personal care products such as mouthwash, lidocaine gel, aloe vera gel, and skin tonic. A homemade extraction device was innovated, in which by passing the stream of gas bubbles through the deep eutectic solvent a thin layer of the extraction phase is coated on the surface of the bubbles. The extraction is finally achieved when the bubbles are going up through the sample. The single-factor experiments and response surface methodology were applied to optimize the independent variables. The linear range of the method was 0.5 to 1000 mu g L-1, the coefficient of determination for the goal analytes was higher than 0.9989, the instrumental limit of detections were in the range 0.2-0.3 mu g L-1, and the instrumental limit of quantifications were in the range 0.5-1.1 mu g L-1, the relative standard deviations were <5.2% for repeatability and <11.2% for intermediate precision, and the enrichment factors were 66 to 87 obtained under the optimized conditions. A spiking approach by means of standard material was used to estimate accuracy. The relative recoveries were in the range 95.8-105.2%. By using mentioned strategies, the organic waste and energy consumption reduced, toxic reagents replaced with safer ones, and operator safety enhanced. Accordingly, these benefits have been simultaneously attained and, the proposed method was one step closer to automation and sustainable analytical chemistry.

Automated summary

The study successfully determined parabens in personal care products using gas flow-assisted dispersive liquid-phase microextraction with deep eutectic solvent. By optimizing various experimental variables, a highly accurate and stable analytical method was established. The method not only reduced organic waste and energy consumption, but also enhanced operator safety.