A high efficient adsorbent for plant growth regulators based on ionic liquid and β-cyclodextrin functionalized...

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Materials Science

Background:

• Plant growth regulators (PGRs) are crucial for agriculture but require sensitive detection methods.
• Existing extraction techniques for PGRs can be time-consuming and less efficient.
• Development of advanced adsorbents is needed for effective sample preparation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize novel ionic liquid-functionalized magnetic graphene oxide materials.
• To develop an efficient magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) method for plant growth regulators in vegetable samples.
• To evaluate the performance of the synthesized adsorbent for trace analysis of PGRs.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of four ionic liquids (ILs) with imidazole cations and various anion rings.
• Functionalization of magnetic graphene oxide (Fe3O4@SiO2/GO) with β-cyclodextrin and ILs.
• Characterization of the synthesized adsorbent materials using various techniques.
• Optimization of MSPE parameters including adsorbent dosage, pH, and extraction time.
• Coupling the optimized MSPE method with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole linear ion trap mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QqQ-LIT-MS).

Main Results:

• Four ILs were synthesized and used to functionalize Fe3O4@SiO2/GO/β-CD materials.
• The VOIm+AQSO3- modified adsorbent demonstrated superior adsorption capacity for 7 PGRs.
• Optimized MSPE method achieved low limits of detection (0.01–0.18 μg/kg) and quantitation (0.03–0.58 μg/kg).
• High linearity (R2 > 0.9982) was observed for PGRs in the range of 2–50 μg/kg.

Conclusions:

• The synthesized Fe3O4@SiO2/GO/β-CD/IL adsorbent is highly effective for trace enrichment of PGRs.
• The developed MSPE-UHPLC-QqQ-LIT-MS method provides a sensitive and reliable approach for PGR determination in vegetables.
• This study offers a promising tool for food safety and quality control.