Polyaniline-coated core-shell silica microspheres-based dispersive-solid phase extraction for detection of benzophenone-type UV filters in environmental water samples

Abstract

Polyaniline-modified core-shell mesoporous silica (CSMS@PANI) nanocomposite microspheres are synthesized as adsorbent in dispersion-solid phase extraction (d-SPE) for enrichment and purification of benzophenone-type UV filters. The synthesized CSMS@PANI nanocomposite microspheres exhibit large specific surface area (33.45 m2/g) and uniform fibrous shell (microsphere diameter of 1.3 μm, outer silica shell thickness of 120 nm, pore diameter of 12.04 nm), which can greatly improve the extraction efficiency of the samples. Combining CSMS@PANI based d-SPE with sheathless capillary electrophoresis-tandem mass spectrometry for detection, we can achieve sensitive determination of six benzophenone-type UV filters with the detection limit of 0.6 pg/mL-0.2 ng/mL and the enrichment factors of 470-660. The method is successfully applied for ultrasensitive detection of trace amount benzophenone-type UV filters in environment water samples. It is indicated that the method has the advantages of rapid and efficient enrichment, high sensitivity, and excellent repeatability. Our study extends the application of core-shell mesoporous silica materials and would be of value for pretreatment of trace-amount and complex real samples.