Optimization of fabric phase sorptive extraction for the determination of selected pharmaceuticals in environmental waters

There is a growing public and scientific concern about the possibility of ecosystem and human health effects from pharmaceuticals in environment. Results have shown that several types of environmental waters (drinking water, groundwater, surface water, treated water) were contaminated by the presence of pharmaceutical compounds including psychiatric drugs. For this reason, it is imperative to develop analytical methods of extraction and pre-concentration to allow for subsequent instrumental analysis of these drugs. In this work, fabric phase sorptive extraction (FPSE) is investigated for the extraction and pre-concentration of citalopram, clozapine and sertraline (used in the treatment of mental diseases) in water samples with the aid of high performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detection (HPLC-UV/DAD). Parameters affecting the efficiency of FPSE were evaluated in depth. Studies have been conducted with regards to calculation of contact angle and roll-off angle, mass uptake while several techniques were employed for material characterization such as FT-IR, differential scanning calorimeter analysis and optical microscope. The method shows good linearity, with RSD of less than 15%. Relative recoveries higher than 40% were obtained for the studied compounds