Chemically modified cellulose paper as a thin film microextraction phase

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Environmental Science
• Materials Science

Background:

• Estrogenic hormones are endocrine-disrupting compounds found in various water bodies.
• Efficient extraction methods are crucial for detecting and quantifying these pollutants.
• Cellulose paper offers a potentially sustainable and cost-effective matrix for extraction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and optimize a novel thin film microextraction (TFME) method using chemically modified cellulose paper.
• To evaluate the efficacy of modified cellulose paper as an extracting phase for estrogenic hormones.
• To determine the method's applicability for analyzing estrogenic hormones in real-world environmental and biological samples.

Main Methods:

• Cellulose papers were chemically modified using reagents like phenyl isocyanate.
• Modified papers were employed as sorbent phases in TFME for estrogenic hormone extraction.
• Liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (LC-FLD) was used for quantification.

Main Results:

• Cellulose paper modified with phenyl isocyanate exhibited the highest affinity for target estrogenic hormones (17α-ethynylestradiol, estriol, estradiol).
• Optimized TFME parameters (desorption, shaking rate, ionic strength, extraction time) led to sensitive detection (LODs 0.05–0.23 μgL⁻¹).
• The method demonstrated good linearity (r² > 0.9935) and high relative recoveries (75–101%) in real samples (wastewater, urine, river water).

Conclusions:

• Chemically modified cellulose paper, particularly with phenyl isocyanate, is a viable and effective extracting phase for TFME of estrogenic hormones.
• The developed method is sensitive, reliable, and suitable for the analysis of estrogenic hormones in diverse aqueous matrices.
• This approach offers a promising alternative for environmental monitoring and human exposure assessment of endocrine-disrupting compounds.