β-Cyclodextrin-modified three-dimensional graphene oxide-wrapped melamine foam for the solid-phase extraction of...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Analytical Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Development of advanced solid-phase extraction (SPE) materials is crucial for sensitive and selective analyte determination.
• Graphene oxide (GO) offers a large surface area and unique electronic properties, while β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) provides host-guest complexation capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize a novel SPE substrate based on 3D graphene oxide-wrapped melamine foam functionalized with β-cyclodextrin.
• To evaluate the material's efficiency for the determination of flavonoids.
• To investigate the underlying adsorption mechanisms and analytical performance.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of 3D graphene oxide-wrapped melamine foam functionalized with β-cyclodextrin via covalent interaction.
• Theoretical calculation of adsorption energies using periodic density functional theory (DFT).
• Static-state and dynamic-state binding experiments, 1H NMR spectroscopy, and optimization of extraction conditions.

Main Results:

• The developed material demonstrated effective adsorption of flavonoids, forming monolayer coverage via chemical adsorption and inclusion complexation.
• The method exhibited good linearity (2-200 μg/L or 5-200 μg/L) with high correlation coefficients (0.9979-0.9994).
• Satisfactory batch-to-batch reproducibility (3.5-6.8%) and successful application to flavonoid determination in Lycium barbarum (Goji) samples (77.9-102.6% relative recovery).

Conclusions:

• The β-cyclodextrin/graphene oxide-wrapped melamine foam is a promising SPE material for efficient flavonoid extraction.
• The synergistic properties of GO and β-CD contribute to the material's enhanced analytical performance.
• The method provides a reliable and sensitive approach for analyzing flavonoids in complex natural matrices.