Exposure and risk assessment of phthalates in environmental water using a three-template molecularly imprinted fiber...

Phthalate is a kind of environmental estrogen having a reproductive toxicity effect on animals and plants in the environment, and its detection is prone to matrix interference. Nevertheless, the molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) can resist matrix interference. A three-template MIP solid-phase microextraction fiber array technique with improved adsorption flux and extraction capacity was innovatively developed. Additionally, the three-template MIP fiber arrays were used to screen phthalates in environmental water. The result showed that the three-template MIP fiber array had great potential for monitoring and controlling phthalate in environmental water. Moreover, the enrichment factors of the three-template MIP fiber arrays were 1410.65, 2419.55, and 493.21 times those of PA, PDMS, and PDMS/DVB commercial fiber-constructed arrays, respectively. The risk assessment using risk quotient revealed that BBP and DPHP had a medium-high ecological risk, DMP had a medium-low ecological risk, while EP and BP had a minimal ecological risk. This strategy represents an effective, easily tailored, and reusable method to simultaneously enhance extraction capacity and adsorption flux. It is environmentally friendly and has great feasibility for specific recognition of phthalate from environmental water and ecological risk assessment.