MOF-74/polystyrene-derived Ni-doped hierarchical porous carbon for structure-oriented extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their metabolites from human biofluids

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), as a major source that significantly increase the risk of developing lung cancer, severely jeopardize public health in modern society. The analysis of PAHs and their metabolites (hydroxylated PAHs, OH-PAHs) is important for biomonitoring and exposure assessment. However, due to the difference in their physico-chemical properties and matrix interference, realizing high-performance extraction of both PAHs and OH-PAHs is still a challenge. Herein, a nickel-doped hierarchical porous carbon (Ni/HPC) is synthesized by carbonizing the polystyrene (PS) infiltrated metal-organic frameworks (MOF-74(Ni)). The ob-tained Ni/HPC exhibits hierarchical pores and evenly distributed Ni atoms, providing efficient diffusion path-ways and adsorption sites. The custom Ni/HPC-coated solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fiber shows superior enrichment capabilities for PAHs and their metabolites under various interfering conditions, verifying its prac-ticability in real sample analysis. The proposed method provides a new strategy to synthesize carbon-based adsorbents that achieves matrix-resistant enrichment of PAHs and OH-PAHs, which simplifies the related sam-ple preparation process for environmental analysis and clinical diagnosis.

Automated summary

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) pose a significant risk to human health and analyzing their metabolites is crucial for biomonitoring and exposure assessment. A newly synthesized Ni/HPC material shows promising potential for efficient extraction of both PAHs and OH-PAHs, simplifying sample preparation for environmental analysis and clinical diagnosis.