Hydrophilic molecularly imprinted nanospheres for the extraction of rhodamine B followed by HPLC analysis: A green approach and hazardous waste elimination

• Published in: Talanta (Oxford) 2020-08, Vol.215, p.120933, Article 120933
• Main Authors: Arabi, Maryam, Ostovan, Abbas, Bagheri, Ahmad Reza, Guo, Xiaotong, Li, Jinhua, Ma, Jiping, Chen, Lingxin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Eco-friendly waste; Experimental design; Green synthesis; Hazardous Waste - analysis; Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; Matrix solid phase dispersion; Molecular Imprinting; Molecularly imprinted polymers; Nanospheres - chemistry; Particle Size; Rhodamine B; Rhodamines - analysis; Surface Properties
• ISSN: 0039-9140; 1873-3573
• DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2020.120933

In this work, hydrophilic molecularly imprinted nanospheres (MINs) were synthesized via surface imprinting technology and subsequently utilized as dispersant sorbent in matrix solid phase dispersion (MSPD) for the extraction of rhodamine B (RhB) as the illogical food additive dye from different foodstuffs, followed by HPLC analysis. By considering hydrophilicity of target analyte, the sol-gel route was chosen for the preparation of MINs in aqueous media at mild conditions. Most importantly, both synthesis and extraction steps were designed and performed in the line of green chemistry and hazardous waste was eliminated to minimize detrimental impact on the operator health and the environment. The reputable experimental design methodology was adopted to assist the condition optimization of MSPD, which comprehends the significance of the factors and their interactions with the least experimental runs. Under optimized MINs-MSPD-HPLC conditions, the detection limit of RhB was down to 0.14 μg kg−1 and excellent linearity over the wide range of 0.5–10000 μg kg−1 was attained. Furthermore, endogenous RhB was found in the tested food samples with relative standard deviations (RSDs) of ≤4.6%, and satisfactory recoveries were from 83.6 to 96.9%. The simple green MINs-MSPD method holds great potential for determination of trace RhB in complicated solid/semi-solid samples, showing rapidity, accuracy and reliability. [Display omitted] •Hydrophilic molecularly imprinted nanospheres (MINs) were synthesized.•MINs based matrix solid phase dispersion (MSPD) was used for Rhodamine B.•Both synthesis and extraction steps were designed in the line of green chemistry.•MSPD variables were simply optimized by experimental design methodology.•MINs-MSPD-HPLC method was applicable to analysis of solid/semi-solid samples.