Hollow Polymer Microspheres Research Articles

Synthesis of chiral hollow polymer microspheres and their applications in the spectroscopic chiral discrimination of tryptophan isomers

Hollow polymer microspheres (HPMs) were synthesized, which were then hydrolyzed in aqueous ammonia to produce carboxyl (–COOH) groups on their surface. L-phenylalanine (L-Phe) was grafted to the hydrolyzed HPMs (H-HPMs) through amidation reactions, endowing the H-HPMs with chirality. The resultant chiral HPMs (C-HPMs) were used for the chiral discrimination of tryptophan (Trp) isomers. Due to the same rotatorydirection of L-Phe and L-Trp, the C-HPMs showed greatly higher selectivity toward L-Trp than its isomer. After being adsorbed by the C-HPMs, the absorbance of the residual L-Trp is significantly lower than that of the residual D-Trp, and thus spectroscopic chiral discrimination of the Trp isomers was successfully achieved. The Trp isomers were also discriminated by the chiral solid polymer microspheres (C-SPMs), while the difference in the absorbance of the residual L-Trp and D-Trp is remarkably smaller than that obtained by the C-HPMs. The outstanding discrimination capability of the C-HPMs might be ascribed to their high surface permeability resulted from their unique hollow structure.

Recent Trends in Polymer Matrix Solid Buoyancy Materials: A Review.

Polymer matrix solid buoyancy materials (PSBMs) have the advantages of low density, high strength, low cost, and low water absorption, and they are widely used in marine engineering fields. How to improve the performance of PSBMs further and adapt them to harsh marine environments has become a hot topic in current research. This paper provides a comprehensive summary of PSBM, detailing both the preparation methodologies and properties of single-component and multi-component PSBM. In this paper, relevant research is systematically summarized from two dimensions of matrix and filler, and the application of thermosetting resin and thermoplastic resin as a matrix in PSBM is introduced in detail, and the corresponding research on fillers such as hollow glass microspheres, fly ash, hollow ceramic spheres and hollow polymer microspheres are expounded. This paper aims to summarize the latest advancements in PSBM research, thereby providing insights into the current state of the field and guiding future investigations.

Chitin nanocrystals-stabilized emulsion as template for fabricating injectable suspension containing polylactide hollow microspheres

One of the promising applications of rod-like chitin nanocrystals (ChNCs) is the use as particle emulsifier to develop Pickering emulsions. We reported a ChNC-stabilized oil-in-water emulsion system, and developed a Pickering emulsion-templated method to prepare polylactide (PLA) hollow microspheres here. The results showed that both non-modified ChNCs and acetylated ChNCs could well emulsify the dichloromethane (DCM) solution of PLA-in-aqueous mannitol solution systems, forming very stable emulsions. At the same oil-to-water ratios and ChNC loadings, the emulsion stability was improved with increasing acetylation levels of ChNCs, accompanied by reduced size of droplets. Through the solvent evaporation, the PLA hollow microspheres were templated successfully, and the surface structure was also strongly dependent on the acetylation level of ChNCs. At a low level of acetylation, the single-hole or multi-hole surface structure formed, which was attributed to the out-diffusion of DCM caused by the solvent extraction and evaporation. These surface defects decreased with increased acetylation levels of ChNCs. Moreover, the aqueous suspension with as-obtained PLA microspheres revealed shear-thinning property and good biocompatibility, thereby had promising application as injectable fillers. This work can provide useful information around tuning surface structures of the Pickering emulsion-templated polymer hollow microspheres by regulating acetylation level of ChNCs.

Innovative strategy for controlling resonant frequencies of syntactic polymer foams regulating by hollow microspheres

This study aims to precisely control the resonant frequency of synthetic composite foam materials with fixed dimensions. By incorporating rigid hollow glass microspheres XLD3000(XLD) and flexible hollow polymer microspheres MFL-81GCA(MFL) into the base resin (EP), we prepared synthetic composite foams containing different volume fractions of hollow microspheres (EP-XLD and EP-MFL). We conducted tests and analyses on the density, mechanical properties, resonant frequency, and microstructure of the EP-XLD and EP-MFL systems. Results indicate that as the volume fraction of hollow microspheres increases, the flexural specific modulus of the EP-XLD and EP-MFL systems, respectively, exhibits a linear increase and decrease, and the resonant frequency shifts linearly towards higher and lower frequencies. This trend aligns with theoretical predictions, affirming that the material’s resonant frequency is closely related to its flexural modulus. This research not only deepens the understanding of the control mechanisms for the resonant frequency of synthetic composite foams but also proposes an innovative material design strategy with broad application potential, particularly in the fields of acoustics, damping, and structural materials, where it promises to significantly enhance material performance and meet specific engineering needs.

MXene nanosheets coated conjugated microporous polymers hollow microspheres incorporating with phase change material for continuous desalination

The inevitable intermittency of solar illumination during the interfacial evaporation process can cause a reduction in the evaporation performance of solar evaporators. Here, we report the fabrication of a new solar-driven interfacial evaporator using MXene nanosheets as the photothermal layer, modifying them with conjugated microporous polymer hollow microspheres, and then compounding them with the phase change material, in this case, cetyl alcohol, to form a composite evaporator (CE) that can perform all-weather solar interfacial evaporation. By combining interfacial evaporation photothermal conversion with energy storage, the evaporator achieves an evaporation rate of 1.57 kg⋅m−2⋅h−1 at a light intensity of 1 kW⋅m−2 and 2.79 kg⋅m−2⋅h−1 at a light intensity of 2 kW⋅m−2. In addition, the evaporator attains an excellent solar evaporation efficiency of over 91% in both cases and even in salt water. In addition, interestingly, our CE exhibits excellent continuous evaporation ability, e.g., the mass of evaporated water was increased by 0.36 kg⋅m−2 at a light intensity of 2 kW⋅m−2 compared to the cavity evaporator without the phase change material (PCM) when solar light was turned off. These results could be attributed to the fact that the energy released by the incorporated phase change material allows the evaporator to maintain stable evaporation under conditions of insufficient or intermittent solar irradiation, potentially providing a new opportunity for addressing the intermittent problem of evaporation at the solar interface due to unstable light intensity, thus showing great potential for practical continuous desalination.

Efficient antibiotic wastewater treatment via interfacial water evaporation based soot-coated conjugated microporous polymer hollow microspheres

Solar-driven interfacial evaporation (SDIE) technology holds the promise of purification and removal of organic pollutants from water samples. In this work, an efficient SDIE composed of multifunctional self-floating photothermal materials based on candle soot-coated conjugated microporous polymer hollow spheres (CS-CMPsHM) for treatment of tetracycline (TC) wastewater is reported. By depositing candle soot nanoparticles, CS-CMPsHM achieved excellent interfacial evaporation performance by extending the light absorption. Additionally, the π-π interaction between CMP's unique conjugated network and TC molecules and the well-developed porosity facilitates the capture of target contaminants. The synthesized CS-CMPsHM evaporator demonstrated remarkable properties, i.e., excellent photothermal performance (with superior photothermal conversion efficiency up to 94 % and evaporation rate of 1.55 kg m−2h−1 under one sun irradiation), extremely low wet thermal conductivity (0.075 W m-1K−1), reusability, superior salt resistance, stability, adsorption of pollutants and renewable performance. Furthermore, CS-CMPsHM remains its excellent purification performance from real water samples (the Yellow River) measured by a three-dimensional fluorescence spectrometer. The results of biological toxicity show that the purified water recovered by the SDIE method effectively reduced the phytotoxicity of TC. With its straightforward and scalable manufacturing process, our CS-CMPsHM demonstrates promising potential as advanced photothermal materials for the treatment of various pollutants using SDIE.

Poly(vinylphosphonic acid) grafted hollow microspheres with nanoparticles-stacked polymer shell for uranium selective extraction: Dynamic role translation of ethyl α-cyanoacrylate

Hollow polymer microspheres (MPs) have attracted much attention in the field of separation science and technology due to their low density, high specific surface area, easy chemical modification, and abundant binding sites. However, traditional methods for preparing hollow microspheres typically involve surfactants and expensive templates, which are time-consuming and uneconomical, and are not suitable for large-scale production. Oil-soluble α-ethyl cyanoacrylate (ECA), a highly reactive monomer, has been employed to prepare hollow microspheres efficiently in the current study. Self-stabilizing encapsulation via fast interfacial polymerization of ECA would confer a special Pickering-like emulsion droplet reactor for rapid microcapsule formation. The ECA acts as both a monomer and a Pickering emulsifier during the reaction, in which case the newly formed polyECA (PECA) nanoparticles accumulate at the interface, forming a shell of PECA layer eventually. Excellent mechanical property of the PECA layers prevent droplets from coalescence, resulting in hollow PECA MPs after drying. To provide adsorption sites for chelating of uranyl ions, a water-soluble vinyl monomer grafted with ethylene phosphate (vinylphosphonic acid) was then introduced onto the non-reactive double bonds of the polyECA chain under mild reaction conditions, owning to the slightly amphiphilic nature of the PECA chain. The obtained adsorbent for uranium extraction is thus named as PECA-PO43− MPs. Owing to the accessible affinity sites and hollow structure, PECA-PO43− MPs displayed high adsorption capacities at pH = 7–9, showing remarkable selectivity for uranium even in the presence of various competition ions. Moreover, PECA-PO43− MPs exhibited high stability as well as excellent recyclability toward uranium capture after five regeneration cycles. Therefore, this work not only presents a new clue to fabricate novel functional MPs in a high-efficiency way, but also provides a novel platform for efficient uranium extraction.

The functionalization of film materials for grafting WPU with polystyrene hollow microspheres

Surface coating expresses the most appealing quality of a product. Multifunctional waterborne polyurethane (WPU) coatings with thermal insulation, matting, UV resistance and hydrophobicity are one of the targets of advanced materials manufacturing. In this study, polymer hollow microspheres with polyhydroxy groups on the surface, called HM-OH, were prepared by emulsion polymerization. Through TEM and SEM observations, it was confirmed that the HM-OH has a cavity (approximately 207 nm in diameter) with an average diameter of 726 nm. The relative content of the hydroxyl group on its surface is 9.1 %, and it has good dispersibility and thermal stability. A multifunctional low-gloss WPU nanocoating was prepared by grafting onto HM-OH, called WPU-g-HM. The emulsion stability test showed that WPU-g-HM basically solved the problem of blending incompatibility between HM and WPU, and the tensile strength and elastic modulus of WPU-g-HM reached their best values when the amount of HM-OH was 2.5 %. UV–vis testing showed that the HM-OH made the prepared nanocoating have unique UV shielding properties. Furthermore, it was observed by SEM and AFM that the rough surface morphology of the nanocoating was the main reason for the decrease in the gloss of WPU-g-HM compared with WPU. The thermal conductivity of WPU-g-HM was 0.0347 W/(K·m), and the water contact angle was 100.3°, which indicated that the multifunctional WPU composite coating was successfully prepared.

Fabrication and Characterization of Hollow Polysiloxane Microsphere Polymer Matrix Composites with Improved Energy Absorption

Hollow polymer microspheres with superior elastic properties, high thermal stability, and energy absorbance capabilities are essential in many applications where shock and vibration need to be mitigated, such as in civil, medical, and defense industries. In this paper, the synthesis, fabrication, and characterization of hollow thermoset microspheres for syntactic polymer foam were studied. The hollow polymer microspheres (HPMs) were made by developing core–shell composites and thermally removing the polystyrene core to yield a polysiloxane shell. The HPMs were embedded into a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) matrix to form a polymer syntactic foam. The mechanical energy absorption characteristic of polymer syntactic foams was measured by cyclic uniaxial compression testing following ASTM 575. The engineered compression response was demonstrated by fabricating and testing syntactic foams with different porosities, ranging from a 50 vol% to 70 vol% of HPMs. Through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), we observed that the HPM contributes to the energy absorption of the syntactic foam. Moreover, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) determined the necessity of a profound study to understand the effects of varying HPM synthesis parameters, as well as the syntactic foam fabrication methods. It was shown that the compressive modulus and toughness can be increased by 20% using a 70 vol% of porosity with synthesized HPM syntactic foams over bulk PDMS. We also found that the energy absorbed increased by 540% when using a 50 vol% of porosity with fabricated HPM-PDMS syntactic foams.

Double-shelled hollow polymer microspheres as acid and metallic colloid bi-functional catalyst for a deactalization-hydrogenation tandem reaction

The double-shelled hollow polymer microspheres with a carboxylic acid in the inner shell and palladium metallic nanocolloids in the outer shell were prepared as a bi-functional catalyst for a tandem reaction including deacetalization on-hydrogenation from benzaldehyde dimethyl acetate to benzyl alcohol. The double-shelled hollow poly(ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate-co-acrylic acid) (PAA) and poly(ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate-co-N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PNVP) microspheres were synthesized by a two-stage refluxing precipitation copolymerization in presence of 3-(trimethoxysilyl) propyl methacrylate (MPS)-modified silica as seeds to get SiO2/Pt-BA/SiO2/PNVP tetra-layer microspheres with the subsequent hydrolysis of t-butyl ester to acid group and selective removal of the silica inner core and the sandwiched third layer. The palladium nano-colloids in outer-shell were prepared by the in-situ ethanol reduction of Pd(II) after the coordination of palladium acetate with N-pyrrolidone (NVP) groups in presence of SiO2/Pt-BA/SiO2/PNVP tetra-layer microspheres as stabilizers.

Physicochemical, mechanical and electrical properties of epoxy-based syntactic foam under thermal and hydrothermal aging conditions

In this study, epoxy resin containing hollow polymeric microspheres as an insulating material was synthesized and subjected to thermal and hydrothermal aging. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and three-dimensional computed tomography (3D CT) were used to examine the internal structures of the specimens as they aged. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR) helped to elucidate the physical and chemical changes associated with aging. Tensile, flexural, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and other mechanical tests were used to examine the mechanical properties of the syntactic foams (SFs) as they aged. Electrical tests such as the leakage current and breakdown strength were used to measure how effectively the SF materials maintained their insulating characteristics with aging. By comparing the aged and unaged specimens, the aging mechanism of the SF was elucidated. The findings demonstrated that the epoxy resin matrix composite foam packed with hollow polymeric microspheres had little effect on thermal aging and exhibited good hydrothermal aging resistance. The microstructures of the specimens subjected to thermal aging barely changed; however, hydrothermal aging resulted in dramatic changes. Notably, the comprehensive properties of the SF increased during thermal aging and hydrothermal aging, possibly due to an increase in secondary crosslinking density after a certain period of aging. The thermal and hydrothermal aging specimens had maximum tensile strengths of 14 and 13 MPa, respectively. The tensile strength dropped as aging time increased to 11.6 and 7 MPa, respectively. Furthermore, while the breakdown strengths of the hydrothermal samples continued to fall, the breakdown strengths of the thermal specimens initially increased and subsequently decreased, with a maximum value of 40.76 kV/mm. This was possibly related to the fact that the crosslinking reaction dominated the thermal aging process, whereas hydrothermal aging had numerous implications on the characteristics of the SF materials. This study showed that the SF filled with hollow polymeric microspheres had the potential for long-term durability in hot and humid environments, supporting its application as an insulation material in composite insulation cores. • The aging-time related micromorphology, physicochemical, mechanical and electrical performance of the syntactic foam are investigated by accelerated thermal aging and hydrothermal aging tests. • Both thermal and hydrothermal aging diminish the characteristics of specimens, while hydrothermal aging exhibits a more serious threat to the overall performance. • The trend of water absorption of epoxy resin-based syntactic foam shows non-Fick law. • The results of three-dimensional computed tomography reveal that thermal and hydrothermal aging increase the number and length of pores.

A sound-absorbing and heat-insulating collagen fiber composite material

Using methacrylic acid (MAA) and methyl methacrylate (MMA) as core monomers and polystyrene as the shell layer, polymer hollow microspheres (PHM) with good stability were prepared by using an alkali osmotic swelling method followed by spray drying. The average size of the PHM was approximately 875 nm. As a filling cross-linking agent, the PHM were added to a skin collagen material to disperse and fix, and a “polymer hollow microsphere composite collagen fiber” (PHCC) material was obtained. The results show that the PHM improve the mechanical strength, thermal stability and water resistance of the skin collagen material. The PHCC material has a low thermal conductivity (0.035 W/(K·m)) and excellent sound insulation performance and retains the soft and delicate touch of leather, which has application value in high-grade decorative materials and functional leather. This provides a new approach for developing flexible sound-absorbing thermal insulation materials.

Application of noise reduction and heat insulation based on controlled-size polystyrene hollow microspheres

Core/shell polymer microspheres containing carboxyl group were prepared by emulsion polymerization, and then the hollow polymer microspheres (PHMs) were formed by infiltration and swelling after alkali solution post-treatment. Effects of emulsifier types and initial pH of alkali post-treatment on the particle size distribution and morphology of PHMs emulsion were investigated. Foamed animal skin material (FAS) was obtained by cross-linking and curing the skin collagen materials with PHMs. The results showed that the optimal initial pH was 9, and a stable PHMs emulsion with a maximum average particle size of 888.5 nm was obtained. The average particle size order of the PHMs emulsions obtained with different emulsifiers was: sodium stearate (1028.0 nm) > SDBS (823.6 nm) > cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (607.4 nm). The mechanical strength, porosity, and thermal stability of FAS were enhanced by PHMs dispersing and fixing, while its natural permeability and softness were retained. In addition, the whiteness and ultraviolet aging resistance of FAS were improved obviously. The thermal conductivity of FAS was reduced to 0.034 W/(K·m), which was in line with the standard of polystyrene foam board for building materials. In the range of 2000 ∼ 7000 Hz, the sound transmission loss of FAS reaches 25 ∼ 40 dB.

Hierarchical polymeric hollow microspheres with size tunable single holes and their application as catalytic microreactor

Hierarchical polymeric hollow microspheres with size tunable single holes and their application as catalytic microreactor

Micro-Nano Dual-Scale All-Polymer particles for construction of superwetting surface with controllable wettability and Hot-Water-Repellency

Based on the principle of like dissolves like, the reactive oil phases, consisted of monomers, cross-linked monomers, fluorinated monomers and initiators, were absorbed into cavity of hollow polymer microspheres to obtain reactants-loaded particles in the stirring condition at room temperature; in the effect of heating, the internal reactants could polymerize to glut its core cavity and shell pores, hereupon a quantity of nanoscale copolymer surface protrusions were produced; ultimately, the micro-nano dual-scale all-polymer particles (MNDPs) were integrally formed by dispensing with any chemical modification, which physico-chemical properties could be regularly controlled by utilizing alteration of absorbed fluorinated monomers types. In view of the special wetting behaviour for various temperature water droplets to anti-wetting MNDPs-based surfaces, the superhydrophobic fabric, applicable to anti-fouling and self-cleaning, was prepared by coating with short fluoroalkyl chain-containing MNDPs; additionally, near-spherical organic fluorine MNDPs were in a position to build hot-water-repellent fabric, which preventing high-temperature droplets from infiltrating or spreading. Furthermore, mathematical analysis of the hot-water-repellent surface was carried out to establish its theoretical wetting model. We believe that the constructed MNDPs, equipped with controlled microstructure and chemical composition, are conducive to realizing the fine regulation of wettability for superwetting MNDPs-coated surface; by means of discussion for static and dynamic contact status of different temperature droplets onto anti-wetting-adjustable MNDPs-based surface, functional coated fabric, that exhibited superhydrophobicity or hot-water-repellency, would be formed, it has favourable research value on high durable non-wetted flexible textile coating; based on mathematical model of wetting state for hot-water-repellent surface, the mechanism, as regards effective blocking thermal-droplet at its contact area from wetting, is clearly clarified, which is beneficial to develop special industrial textiles with high-temperature water proofing.

PH-Responsive Hollow Polymeric Microspheres from Irradiated Cyclic Ether Aqueous Solution

Smart hollow polymeric microspheres have been widely applied in various fields such as controlled release, drug delivery, catalysis, and so on. Herein, a facile, green and one-step template-free method is introduced for preparing pH-responsive hollow polymeric microspheres via gamma irradiation of cyclic ether aqueous solution. The hollow polymeric microspheres are synthesized by radiation-induced polymerization and following the self-assembly and self-organization of amphiphilic polymer with cyclic ethers as monomers in water. SEM, TEM, micro-FTIR, and NMR confirmed the morphology and structures of the resultant microspheres. The confocal laser scanning microscope was used to investigate the stimuli-responsiveness and release behavior of hollow microspheres using 1-pyrene carboxaldehyde as a hydrophobic molecule model. The well-defined hollow polymeric microspheres with an average diameter of ca. 2.6 μm or 1.6 μm were prepared directly from dicyclohexal-18-crown-6 or tetraphydropyrane aqueous solution, respectively. The prepared hollow microspheres exhibit obvious pH stimuli-responsiveness and can release the encapsulated hydrophobic molecules when pH is higher than 5.0. Moreover, the reversible morphology transition between hollow microspheres and micelles makes the prepared hollow polymeric microspheres potentially suitable for a wide range of applications, including removal of dyes, oil field engineering, and biomedical fields.

High performance low-k and wave-transparent cyanate ester resins modified with a novel bismaleimide hollow polymer microsphere

High-performance cyanate ester (CE) resins with excellent dielectric properties are highly desired in the fields of information and communication technology. Herein, we present an efficient strategy for the preparation of low-k and wave-transparent CE resins modified with a novel kind of bismaleimide (BMI) hollow polymer microspheres (BMI-HPPs). Benefiting from both the superior properties of BMI and the unique hollow structure, BMI-HPPs can serve as an effective modifier to reduce dielectric constant (ε) of the CE resins and simultaneously improve their toughness. There are plenty of pendant vinyl groups and unreacted maleimide groups on the surface of BMI-HPPs, which could effectively copolymerize with CE monomer, leading to a lower curing temperature and better interfacial compatibility. The BMI-HPPs/CE resin with 7.5 wt% BMI-HPPs exhibited minimum values of ε and dielectric loss (tanδ) (2.46, 0.006) at 16 GHz, much lower than those of the pristine CE resin (2.92, 0.018), and the corresponding wave transmission was 93.8%–97.1% in the frequency range of 15–18 GHz. Moreover, the modified CE resin showed a maximum impact strength of 18.8 kJ/m2 at 5 wt% loading of BMI-HPPs, which is 64% higher than that of the pristine CE resin. Because of low-k dielectric properties, superior wave-transparent performance and highly enhanced toughness, the BMI-HPPs/CE resins have great potential in the fields of microelectronics and aerospace.

Electrical and Hydrolysis-resistance Properties of Silicone-Modified Resin/Microsphere Syntactic Foam for Composite Cross-arms Insulation Application

Herein, a type of syntactic foam, consisting of silicone-modified resin and hollow polymer microspheres, is developed and tested for the application of a composite cross-arm. The physical properties, electrical properties, and hydrolysis-resistance are tested and analyzed. Suitable microspheres can reduce the density of the syntactic foam to 46.63% of the resin. The dielectric strength of the syntactic foam decreases from 37.9 to 26.1 kV/mm with increasing microsphere content, which is still much higher than the operational requirement of 3 kV/mm. The water-absorption rate (<; 0.36% after 720 h) and leakage current (<; 24.17 μA after boiling for 300 h) show that the syntactic foams have excellent penetration resistance and hydrolysis-resistance. In summary, the syntactic foam can be used as the internal insulation material for composite cross-arms and applied to the electrical insulation field.

Dynamic mechanical behaviors of epoxy resin/hollow polymeric microsphere composite foams under forced non-resonance and forced resonance

Composite foams with 10–50 vol% hollow polymeric microspheres were prepared using bisphenol A epoxy resin and polyetheramine curing agent as the matrix. The results demonstrated that the density, hardness, and static mechanical properties of the epoxy resin/hollow polymer microsphere composite foams, as well as their dynamic mechanical properties under forced non-resonance, were similar to those of polymer/hollow glass microsphere composite foams. At 25°C and under 1–100 Hz forced resonance, the first-order and second-order resonance frequencies of the composite foams shifted to the low-frequency region as the volume fraction of hollow polymer microspheres increased. Meanwhile, the first-order and second-order loss factors of the as-prepared composite foams were improved by 41.7% and 103.3%, respectively, compared with the pure epoxy resin. Additionally, the first-order and second-order loss factors of the as-prepared composite foams reached a maximum at 40 vol% and 30 vol% hollow polymer microspheres, respectively. This research helps us to expand the application range of composite foam materials in damping research.

Carboxyl-functionalized hollow polymer microspheres for detection of trace metal elements in complex food matrixes by ICP-MS assisted with solid-phase extraction

In this work, carboxyl-functionalized hollow polymer microspheres (CHPMs) was successfully fabricated using poly (styrene-itaconic anhydride) particles as the core template and itaconic anhydride and trans-anethole cross-linked with divinylbenzene as the shell. The desirable microspheres and hollow structure of CHPMs were demonstrated by scanning and transmission electron microscopies, respectively. The characterized CHPMs as an adsorbent was packed into a solid phase extraction column to simultaneously detect the V(V), Cr(III), Cu(II), Cd(II), and Pb(II) in digested food samples by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). A series of experimental parameters of solid-phase extraction (SPE) were investigated through vast experiments to improve sensitivity of the proposed method in metal ions detection. The detection limits of the method reached 0.8–3.2 ng L−1 for the target elements, and the relative standard deviations (RSDs) ranging from 1.2% to 3.5% were obtained from eleven parallel experiments using a 1.0 μg L−1 sample solution. The stability allowed the material to withstand more than 15 cycling while the recoveries remained above 88%. In food samples, the detection limits were at 0.20–0.80 μg kg−1, and satisfactory recoveries of 85–104% were obtained in spike tests of laver, fish as well as chicken.