Polyaniline-coated chitosan-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles: Preparation for the extraction and analysis of endocrine-disrupting phenols in environmental water and juice samples

Abstract

In the present study, chitosan (CHI) functionalized Fe3O4 magnetic microspheres coated with polyaniline (PANI) were synthesized for the first time. The chitosan-functionalized magnetic microspheres (Fe3O4@CHI) were synthesized by a co-precipitation method, and then aniline was polymerized on the magnetic core. The obtained Fe3O4@CHI@PANI microspheres were spherical core–shell structure with uniform size at about 100nm with 20–30nm diameter core. The microspheres had a high saturation magnetization of 32emug−1, which was sufficient for magnetic separation. The obtained Fe3O4@CHI@PANI magnetic microspheres were applied as magnetic adsorbents for the extraction of aromatic compounds via π–π interaction between polyaniline shell and aromatic compounds. Three endocrine-disrupting phenols, including bisphenol A (BPA), 2, 4-dichlorophenol (2, 4-DCP), and triclosan (TCS) were selected as the model analytes to verify the extraction ability of Fe3O4@CHI@PANI. The hydrophilic chitosan-functionalized Fe3O4 core (Fe3O4@CHI) improved the dispersibility of Fe3O4@CHI@PANI microspheres, and then improve its extraction efficiency. The dominant parameters affecting enrichment efficiency were investigated and optimized. Under optimal condition, the proposed method was evaluated, and applied to the analysis of phenols in real water and juice samples. The results demonstrated the method based on Fe3O4@CHI@PANI magnetic microspheres had good linearity (R2>0.996), and limits of detection (0.10–0.13ngmL−1), high repeatability (RSD<6.6%) and good recovery (85.0–106.7%).