M. Martínez Galera

Wavelength selection method for multicomponent spectrophotometric determinations using partial least squares

A method for eliminating unnecessary wavelengths is applied with the goal of achieving improved prediction ability in multicomponent determinations by UV/VIS spectrophotometry with partial least squares (PLS). The feature selection method is based on the regression coefficients of the closed form of the PLS model. This method was evaluated with calibration data of different types, and with different criteria to choose the optimum number of factors. The results presented suggest that wavelength selection improves the prediction ability of PLS method.

Determination of eight fluoroquinolones in groundwater samples with ultrasound-assisted ionic liquid dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction prior to high-performance liquid chromatography and fluorescence detection

An ultrasound-assisted ionic liquid dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (US-IL-DLLME) procedure was developed for the extraction of eight fluoroquinolones (marbofloxacin, norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin, lomefloxacin, danofloxacin, enrofloxacin, oxolinic acid and nalidixic acid) in groundwater, using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FD). The ultrasound-assisted process was applied to accelerate the formation of the fine cloudy solution using a small volume of disperser solvent (0.4 mL of methanol), which increased the extraction efficiency and reduced the equilibrium time. For the DLLME procedure, the IL 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C(8)MIM] [PF(6)]) and methanol (MeOH) were used as extraction and disperser solvent, respectively. By comparing [C(8)MIM] [PF(6)] with 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C(6)MIM] [PF(6)]) and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C(4)MIM] [PF(6)]) as extraction solvents, it was observed that when using [C(8)MIM] [PF(6)] the cloudy solution was formed more readily than when using [C(6)MIM] [PF(6)] or [C(4)MIM] [PF(6)]. The factors affecting the extraction efficiency, such as the type and volume of ionic liquid, type and volume of disperser solvent, cooling in ice-water, sonication time, centrifuging time, sample pH and ionic strength, were optimised. A slight increase in the recoveries of fluoroquinolones was observed when an ice-water bath extraction step was included in the analytical procedure (85-107%) compared to those obtained without this step (83-96%). Under the optimum conditions, linearity of the method was observed over the range 10-300 ng L(-1) with correlation coefficient >0.9981. The proposed method has been found to have excellent sensitivity with limit of detection between 0.8 and 13 ng L(-1) and precision with relative standard deviation values between 4.8 and 9.4% (RSD, n=5). Good enrichment factors (122-205) and recoveries (85-107%) were obtained for the extraction of the target analytes in groundwater samples. This simple and economic method has been successfully applied to analyse real groundwater samples with satisfactory results.

Ultrasound-assisted ionic liquid dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography-quadrupole-linear ion trap-mass spectrometry for simultaneous analysis of pharmaceuticals in wastewaters

A simple, rapid, low environmental toxicity and sensitive ultrasound-assisted ionic liquid dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (US-IL-DLLME) procedure was developed for the extraction of nine pharmaceuticals (paracetamol, metoprolol, bisoprolol, betaxolol, ketoprofen, naproxen, ibuprofen, flufenamic acid and tolfenamic acid) in wastewater, and their determination using high-performance liquid chromatography with a hybrid triple quadrupole-linear ion trap-mass spectrometer (LC-QqLIT-MS). The IL 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C8MIM][PF6]) and acetonitrile (ACN) were used as extraction and disperser solvent, respectively, for the DLLME procedure, instead of using toxic chlorinated solvent. The factors affecting the extraction efficiency, such as the type and volume of ionic liquid, type and volume of disperser solvent, cooling in ice-water, sonication time, centrifuging time, sample pH and ionic strength, were optimized. The ultrasound-assisted process was applied to accelerate the formation of the fine cloudy solution using a small volume of disperser solvent (0.5mL of acetonitrile), which increased the extraction efficiency and reduced the equilibrium time. A slight increase in the recoveries of pharmaceuticals was observed when an ice-water bath extraction step was included in the analytical procedure. In this way, enrichment factors between 255 and 340 were obtained. Data acquisition in selected reaction monitoring mode (SRM), allowed the simultaneous identification and quantification of the analytes using two transitions (SRM1 and SRM2). Additionally, the information dependent acquisition (IDA) scan was performed to carry out the identification of those analytes whose second transition was absent or was present at low intensity, also providing extra confirmation for the other analytes. The optimized US-IL-DLLME-LC-QqLIT-MS method showed a good precision level, with relative standard deviation values between 1.1% and 11.3%. Limits of detection and quantification were in the range 0.2-60ngL(-1) and 1.0-142ngL(-1), respectively. Good enrichment factors (255-340) and recoveries (88-111%) were obtained for the extraction of the target analytes in wastewater samples. This method has been successfully applied to analyze effluent wastewater samples from a municipal wastewater treatment plant located in Almería (Spain) and the results indicated the presence of flufenamic acid and metoprolol in concentration levels of 0.1 and 1.3μgL(-1), respectively.

Chemometric assisted solid-phase microextraction for the determination of anti-inflammatory and antiepileptic drugs in river water by liquid chromatography–diode array detection

In the present work, an analytical method for the simultaneous determination of seven non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (naproxen, ketoprofen, diclofenac, piroxicam, indomethacin, sulindac and diflunisal) and the anticonvulsant carbamazepine is reported. The method involves preconcentration and clean-up by solid-phase microextraction using polydimethylsiloxane/divinylbenzene fibers, followed by liquid chromatography with diode array detection analysis. Parameters that affect the efficiency of the solid-phase microextraction step such as soaking solvent, soaking period, desorption period, stirring rate, extraction time, sample pH, ionic strength, organic solvent and temperature were investigated using a Plackett-Burman screening design. Then, the factors presenting significant positive effects on the analytical response (soaking period, stirring rate, stirring time) were considered in a further central composite design to optimize the operational conditions for the solid phase microextraction procedure. Additionally, multiple response simultaneous optimization by using the desirability function was used to find the optimum experimental conditions for the on-line solid-phase microextraction of analytes in river water samples coupled to liquid chromatography and diode array detection. The best results were obtained using a soaking period of 5 min, stirring rate of 1400 rpm and stirring time of 44 min. The use of solid-phase microextraction technique avoided matrix effect and allowed to quantify the analytes in river water samples by using Milli-Q based calibration graphs. Recoveries ranging from 71.6% to 122.8% for all pharmaceuticals proved the accuracy of the proposed method in river water samples. Method detection limits were in the range of 0.5-3.0 microgL(-1) and limits of quantitation (LOQs) were between 1.0 and 4.0 microgL(-1) for pharmaceutical compounds in river water samples. The expanded uncertainty associated to the measurement of the concentration ranged between 8.5% and 29.0% for 20 microgL(-1) of each analyte and between 9.0% and 29.5% for the average of different concentration levels. The main source of uncertainty was the calibration step in both cases.

Determination of cypermethrin, fenvalerate and cis- and trans-permethrin in soil and groundwater by high-performance liquid chromatography using partial least-squares regression

Abstract The partial least-squares (PLS-2) method was applied to the simultaneous determination of the pyrethroids cypermethrin, fenvalerate and cis-trans -permethrin by HPLC. The PLS-2 method was also applied to the resolution of the ternary mixtures of cypermethrin, fenvalerate and trans -permethrin, cis -permethrin being determined from a calibration graph. The results obtained were compared and the best solution was applied to determine the four pyrethroids in soil and groundwater samples.

Chemometric strategies for enhancing the chromatographic methodologies with second-order data analysis of compounds when peaks are overlapped

This overview covers the different chemometric strategies linked to chromatographic methodologies that have been used and presented in the recent literature to cope with problems related to incomplete separation, the presence of unexpected components in the sample, matrix effect and changes in the analytical signal due to pre-treatment of sample. Among the different chemometric strategies it focuses on pre-treatment of data to correct background and time shift of chromatographic peaks and the use of second-order algorithms to cope with overlapping peaks from analytes or from analytes and interferences in liquid chromatography coupled to diode array, fast-scanning fluorescence spectroscopy and mass spectrometry detectors. Finally the review presents the strategies used to deal with changes in the analytical response as result of matrix effect in liquid and gas chromatography, as well as the use of standardization strategies to correct modifications in the analytical signal as a consequence of sample pre-treatment in liquid chromatography.

Chemometric tools improving the determination of anti-inflammatory and antiepileptic drugs in river and wastewater by solid-phase microextraction and liquid chromatography diode array detection.

An analytical method for the simultaneous determination of seven non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (naproxen, ketoprofen, diclofenac, piroxicam, indomethacin, sulindac and diflunisal) and the anticonvulsant carbamazepine in river and wastewater is reported. The method involves pre-concentration and clean-up by solid-phase microextraction using polydimethylsiloxane/divinylbenzene fibers, followed by liquid chromatography with diode array detection analysis. Owing to the fact that river water samples did not contain interferences and no sensitivity changes due to sample matrix were observed, external calibration was implemented. Standardization was also applied in order to carry out the prediction step by preparing only two diluted standards that were subjected to the pre-concentration step and a set of standards prepared in solvent. For the analysis of wastewater samples, in contrast, it was necessary to implement standard addition calibration in combination with the multivariate curve resolution-alternating least squares (MCR-ALS) algorithm, which allowed us to overcome matrix effect and exploit the second order advantage. Recoveries ranging from 72% to 125% for all pharmaceuticals proved the accuracy of the proposed method in river water samples. On the other hand, wastewater sample recoveries ranged from 83% to 140% for all pharmaceuticals, showing an acceptable performance - considering this sample contains no modeled interferences.

Application of solid-phase microextraction for determination of pyrethroids in groundwater using liquid chromatography with post-column photochemically induced fluorimetry derivatization and fluorescence detection

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is a rapid and simple analytical technique which uses coated fused-silica fibers to extract analytes from aqueous samples. This study develops a method of SPME analysis for seven pyrethroids, including fenpropathrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, deltamethrin, fenvalerate, permethrin, tau-fluvalinate and bifenthrin in groundwater samples using high performance liquid chromatography combined with post-column photochemically induced fluorimetry derivatization and fluorescence detection (SPME-LC-PIF-FD). To perform the SPME, a 60 microm polydimethylsiloxane/divinylbenzene (PDMS/DVB) fiber was used for the extraction of the pesticides from groundwater samples. The main factors affecting the SPME process, such as extraction time, stirring rate, extraction temperature, pH and the desorption process were studied. The use of photochemically induced fluorescence for detection improved sensitivity and selectivity. The limits of quantification (LOQs) obtained in the matrix, with respect to EURACHEM Guidance, varied between 0.03 and 0.075 microgL(-1). Relative recoveries ranged from 92 to 109% and relative standard deviations values ranged from 2 to 9%.

Resolution of multicomponent peaks by orthogonal projection approach, positive matrix factorization and alternating least squares

The application of orthogonal projection approach (OPA), alternating least squares (ALS), and positive matrix factorization (PMF) to resolve HPLC-DAD data into individual concentration profiles and spectra is discussed. OPA was initially described as a purity method but the inclusion of an ALS procedure allows its application as a curve resolution method. PMF is a least square approach to factor analysis that in this study has been used as a tool to tackle the problem of curve resolution. OPA, ALS and PMF have been applied using a single matrix (two-way data) or an augmented matrix containing several data matrices simultaneously. The results obtained with the different resolution methods are compared and evaluated using measures of dissimilarity between the real and the estimated spectra. The study is performed in three data subsets, obtained by segmentation of the original data matrix. Within each data subset, there is a reduced number of species present which makes the resolution easier.

Simple and rapid screening procedure for pesticides in water using SPE and HPLC/DAD detection

An HPLC method, using a photodiode array detector (DAD) has been developed for the simultaneous screening of pesticides. A solid phase extraction system (SPE) has been combined, off-line, with the HPLC/DAD to isolate, recover and quantify pesticides from water samples at ppb levels. The pesticides are eluted from a Hypersil C18 column 5 μm applying a solvent elution programme with two steps, isocratic and gradient mode, in reverse phase. Full UV spectra from 200 to 400 nm are recorded on-line during the analysis and may be compared to stored spectra. The method has been applied to the determination of pesticides in real water samples.