Eucalyptol-based dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction in conjunction with GC-MS for phthalate esters...

Endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) rank among the most hazardous chemicals to human health. Accordingly, the accurate determination and continuous monitoring of EDCs in everyday products are critical to ensuring public health and safety. These efforts require advanced analytical procedures to detect specific EDCs in samples with diverse matrix compositions at extremely low concentration levels. Most of the analytical methods developed to date rely on the use of toxic organic solvents for sample preparation. However, current trends in analytical chemistry, in accordance with the principles of Green Analytical Chemistry, emphasise strategies aimed at reducing the environmental impact of such procedures.

In this work, a new analytical procedure involving eucalyptol-based dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for selected phthalate esters (PAEs) determination in bottled water samples, including water dedicated to children, has been developed. The method was optimised using a single-objective approach and validated, yielding good validation parameters, including low limits of detection (0.090-0.24 μg mL^-1) and quantification (0.27-0.72 μg mL^-1). In addition, extraction efficiency ranged between 76 and 131 % with relative standard deviations under 6 % for most analysed compounds (except for DEHP, equal 11 %). In all real water samples, the analytes were under the limit of detection (LOD).

This study introduces a novel, eco-friendly extraction procedure that eliminates the use of organic solvents, utilising eucalyptol as a green alternative. By addressing both environmental concerns and public health risks, this work represents a significant advancement in the field of green analytical chemistry.