In-tube solid phase microextraction using a beta-cyclodextrin coated capillary coupled to high performance liquid...

A configuration of in-tube solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled to HPLC was constructed by using a pump and a six-port valve combined with a PEEK tube as the pre-extraction segment. The extraction capillary was fixed directly on the HPLC six-port valve to substitute for the sample loop. The whole system could be handled easily to perform accurate on-line extraction, and the possible inaccurate quantification caused by sample/mobile phase mixing when using an autosampler could be eliminated. A beta-cyclodextrin coated capillary, prepared by sol-gel method, was used as the extraction capillary for in-tube SPME. Three non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, ketoprofen, fenbufen and ibuprofen, were employed to evaluate the extraction performance of the capillary. After optimizing the extraction conditions, satisfactory extraction efficiency was obtained and detection limits for ketoprofen, fenbufen and ibuprofen in diluted urine samples were 38, 18 and 28ng/mL, respectively. The extraction reproducibility was evaluated with intra-day and inter-day precision, and the R.S.D.s obtained were lower than 4.9 and 6.9%, respectively. The capillary was proved to be reusable and the extraction efficiency did not decrease after 250 extractions.