Utilization of magnetic pomelo peel-derived biochar for extraction and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry determination of opioid drugs in wastewaters

In this study, magnetic pomelo peel-derived biochar composite was fabricated and applied as a low-cost adsorbent for the simultaneous extraction of morphine-like opioids named morphine, codeine, and 6-monoacetylmorphine from wastewaters, prior to their determination via liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. A total of four biochar products were synthesized under different pyrolytic temperatures of 400, 500, 600, and 700. C, respectively, and the 400. C biochar was found to have the greatest extraction ability, with enrichment factors of 34, 58, and 61 for the three drugs. The primary adsorption mechanism includes p-p interaction and H-bonding. Parameters affecting the extraction of opioids were optimized. Under optimum conditions (such as pH = 7; adsorbent amount = 15 mg; sample volume = 20 ml; eluent solvent, 200 mu l of methanol), the method was proved to be linear in the range of 0.05-10.0 mu g/L, with coefficients of determination greater than 0.99, and the limits of detection were 0.006-0.010 mu g/L. In-batch and inter-batch precisions were 1.8%-6.5% and 4.8%10.6%, respectively. The method was successfully applied to the determination of the target opioids in the samples of influent and effluent wastewater. The developed method by using magnetic pomelo peel-derived biochar could potentially be applied for the effective estimation of illicit drug consumption.

Automated summary

In this study, a magnetic pomelo peel-derived biochar composite was developed and used as a low-cost adsorbent for the simultaneous extraction of morphine, codeine, and 6-monoacetylmorphine from wastewaters. The method was proven to be linear and accurate for the determination of these opioids in influent and effluent wastewater samples. The results suggest that this biochar-based method could be a promising approach for estimating illicit drug consumption.