Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Solid-phase extraction of sulfonylurea herbicides from water samples with single-walled carbon nanotubes disk

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Microchimica Acta Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study presents a new, easily made and practical solid-phase extraction disk, a single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) disk. The properties of the disk were evaluated by extracting large volumes of aqueous solution (500–3,000 mL) spiked with trace levels of sulfonylurea herbicides, metsulfuron-methyl, chlorsulfuron, bensulfuron-methyl, pyrazosulfuron-ethyl, and chlorimuron-ethyl. The adsorption of analytes on the SWCNTs disk was more favorable at pH 3.0, and the adsorbed sulfonylurea herbicides could be eluted completely with acetonitrile (1% acetic acid) solvent. The disks were stacked to enhance their extraction ability to analytes. The triple layered SWCNTs disks system showed excellent extraction efficiency when the sample volume was up to 3,000 mL. A comparative study was conducted with a commercial C18 disk and an activated carbon disk. The SWCNTs disks showed an adsorption capacity comparable to sulfonylurea herbicides to the C18 disk and activated carbon disk, but the analytes retained on the activated carbon disk were hardly desorbed. Finally, the triple layered SWCNTs disks system was used to pretreat 1,000 mL of several environmental water samples spiked with the analytes, and satisfactory recoveries (79–102%) were obtained. Detection limits of 1.1–7.2 ng L−1 for analytes were achieved under the optimized conditions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Baker SE, Olsson AO, Needham LL, Barr DB (2005) High-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for quantifying sulfonylurea herbicides in human urine: reconsidering the validation process. Anal Bioanal Chem 383:963

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Degelmann P, Egger S, Jürling H, Müller J, Niessner R, Knopp D (2006) Determination of sulfonylurea herbicides in water and food samples using sol–gel glass-based immunoaffinity extraction and liquid chromatography-ultraviolet/diode array detection or liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. J Agric Food Chem 54:2003

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Ayano E, Kanazawa H, Ando M, Nishimura T (2004) Determination and quantitation of sulfonylurea and urea herbicides in water samples using liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization mass spectrometric detection. Anal Chim Acta 507:211

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Carabias-Martínez R, Rodríguez-Gonzalo E, Herrero-Hernández E, Hernández-Méndez J (2004) Simultaneous determination of phenyl- and sulfonylurea herbicides in water by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography with UV diode array or mass spectrometric detection. Anal Chim Acta 517:71

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Zhu QZ, Degelmann P, Niessner R, Knopp D (2002) Selective trace analysis of sulfonylurea herbicides in water and soil samples based on solid-phase extraction using a molecularly imprinted polymer. Environ Sci Technol 36:5411

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Rodriguez M, Orescan DB (1998) Confirmation and quantitation of selected sulfonylurea, imidazolinone, and sulfonamide herbicides in surface water using electrospray LC/MS. Anal Chem 70:2710

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Perreau F, Bados P, Kerhoas L, Nélieu S, Einhorn J (2007) Trace analysis of sulfonylurea herbicides and their metabolites in water using a combination of off-line or on-line solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Anal Bioanal Chem 388:1265

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Battaglin WA, Furlong ET, Burkhardt MR, Peter CJ (2000) Occurrence of sulfonylurea, sulfonamide, imidazolinone, and other herbicides in rivers, reservoirs and ground water in the Midwestern United States, 1998. Sci Tot Environ 248:123

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Fletcher JS, Pfleeger TG, Ratsch HC (1993) Potential environmental risks associated with the new sulfonylurea herbicides. Environ Sci Technol 27:2250

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Seguin F, Leboulanger C, Rimet F, Druart JC, Bérard A (2001) Effects of atrazine and nicosulfuron on phytoplankton in systems of increasing complexity. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 40:198

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Nyström B, Björnsäter B, Blanck H (1999) Effects of sulfonylurea herbicides on non-target aquatic micro-organisms: growth inhibition of micro-algae and short-term inhibition of adenine and thymidine incorporation in periphyton communities. Aquat Toxicol 47:9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Tran ATK, Hyne RV, Doble P (2007) Determination of commonly used polar herbicides in agricultural drainage waters in Australia by HPLC. Chemosphere 67:944

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Zhou QX, Wang WD, Xiao JP (2006) Preconcentration and determination of nicosulfuron, thifensulfuron-methyl and metsulfuron-methyl in water samples using carbon nanotubes packed cartridge in combination with high performance liquid chromatography. Anal Chim Acta 559:200

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Corcia AD, Crescenzi C, Samperi R, Scappaticcio L (1997) Trace analysis of sulfonylurea herbicides in water: extraction and purification by a carbograph 4 cartridge, followed by liquid chromatography with UV detection, and confirmatory analysis by an electrospray/mass detector. Anal Chem 69:2819

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Ruberu SR, Draper WM, Perera SK (2000) Multiresidue HPLC methods for phenyl urea herbicides in water. J Agric Food Chem 48:4109

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Carabias-Martínez R, Rodríguez-Gonzalo E, Fernández-Laespada ME, Sánchez-San Román FJ (2000) Evaluation of surface- and ground-water pollution due to herbicides in agricultural areas of Zamora and Salamanca (Spain). J Chromatogr A 869:471

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Bruzzoniti MC, Sarzanini C, Mentasti E (2000) Preconcentration of contaminants in water analysis. J Chromatogr A 902:289

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Thurman EM, Snavely K (2000) Advances in solid-phase extraction disks for environmental chemistry. Trend Anal Chem 19:18

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Riley MB, Dumas JA, Gbur EE, Massey JH, Mattice JD, Mersie W, Mueller TC, Potter T, Senseman SA, Watson E (2005) Pesticide extraction efficiency of two solid phase disk types after shipping. J Agric Food Chem 53:5079

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Cai YQ, Jiang GB, Liu JF, Zhou QX (2003) Multiwalled carbon nanotubes as a solid-phase extraction adsorbent for the determination of bisphenol A, 4-n-nonylphenol, and 4-tert-octylphenol. Anal Chem 75:2517

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Suárez B, Simonet BM, Cárdenas S, Valcárcel M (2007) Determination of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in urine by combining an immobilized carboxylated carbon nanotubes minicolumn for solid-phase extraction with capillary electrophoresis–mass spectrometry. J Chromatogr A 1159:203

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Cai YQ, Cai YE, Mou SF, Lu YQ (2005) Multi-walled carbon nanotubes as a solid-phase extraction adsorbent for the determination of chlorophenols in environmental water samples. J Chromatogr A 1081:245

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Zhou QX, Ding YJ, Xiao JP (2007) Simultaneous determination of cyanazine, chlorotoluron and chlorbenzuron in environmental water samples with SPE multiwalled carbon nanotubes and LC. Chromatographia 65:25

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Zhou QX, Xiao JP, Wang WD, Liu GG, Shi QZ, Wang JH (2006) Determination of atrazine and simazine in environmental water samples using multiwalled carbon nanotubes as the adsorbents for perconcentration prior to high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detector. Talanta 28:1309

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Biesaga M, Pyrzynska K (2006) The evaluation of carbon nanotubes as a sorbent for dicamba herbicide. J Sep Sci 29:2241

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Niu HY, Cai YQ, Shi YL, Wei FS, Liu JM, Mou SF, Jiang GB (2007) Evaluation of carbon nanotubes as a solid-phase extraction adsorbent for the extraction of cephalosporins antibiotics, sulfonamides and phenolic compounds from aqueous solution. Anal Chim Acta 594:81

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Vodenitcharova T, Mylvaganam K, Zhang LC (2007) Mechanical interaction between single-walled carbon nanotubes during the formation of a bundle. J Mater Sci 42:4935

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Shiraishi S, Kurihara H, Okabe K, Hulicova D, Oya A (2002) Electric double layer capacitance of highly pure single-walled carbon nanotubes (HiPcoä Buckytubesä) in propylene carbonate electrolytes. Electrochem Commum 4:593

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Vohrer U, Kolaric I, Haque MH, Roth S, Detlaff-Weglikowska U (2004) Carbon nanotube sheets for the use as artificial muscles. Carbon 42:1159

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Zheng F, Baldwin DL, Fifield LS, Anheier NC, Aardahl CL, Grate JW (2006) Single-walled carbon nanotube paper as a sorbent for organic vapor preconcentration. Anal Chem 78:2442

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Spinks GM, Wallace GG, Fifield LS, Dalton LR, Mazzoldi A, Rossi DD, Khayrullin II, Baughman RH (2002) Pneumatic carbon nanotube actuators. Adv Mater 14:1728

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Smith AE (1986) Persistence of the herbicides 14C chlorsulfuron and 14C metsulfuron methyl in prairie soils under laboratory conditions. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 37:698

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Carabias-Martínez R, Rodríguez-Gonzalo E, Fernández-Laespada ME, Sánchez-San Román FJ, Prado-Flores MG (2002) Determination of herbicides and metabolites by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography: evaluation of pollution due to herbicides in surface and groundwaters. J Chromatogr A 950:157

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgement

This work was jointly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (20475060, 20621703) and the Major Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX2-YW-420-1)

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China

    Hongyun Niu, Yali Shi, Yaqi Cai & Guibin Jiang

  2. China National Environmental Monitoring Center, Beijing, 100029, China

    Fusheng Wei

Authors
  1. Hongyun Niu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Yali Shi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Yaqi Cai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Fusheng Wei
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Guibin Jiang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Yaqi Cai or Fusheng Wei.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Niu, H., Shi, Y., Cai, Y. et al. Solid-phase extraction of sulfonylurea herbicides from water samples with single-walled carbon nanotubes disk. Microchim Acta 164, 431–438 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-008-0079-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-008-0079-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation