Polypyrrole-coated alginate/magnetite nanoparticles composite sorbent for the extraction of endocrine-disrupting compounds.

Magnetite nanoparticles incorporated into alginate beads and coated with a polypyrrole adsorbent were prepared (polypyrrole/Fe3 O4 /alginate bead) and used as an effective magnetic solid-phase extraction sorbent for the extraction and enrichment of endocrine-disrupting compounds (estriol, β-estradiol and bisphenol A) in water samples. The determination of the extracted endocrine-disrupting compounds was performed using high-performance liquid chromatography with a fluorescence detector. The effect of various parameters on the extraction efficiency of endocrine disrupting compounds were investigated and optimized including the type and amount of sorbent, sample pH, extraction time, stirring speed, and desorption conditions. Under optimum conditions, the calibration curves were linear in the concentration range of 0.5-100.0 μg/L, and the limit of detection was 0.5 μg/L. The developed method showed a high extraction efficiency, the recoveries were in the range of 90.5 ± 4.1 to 98.2 ± 5.5%. The developed sorbent was easy to prepare, was cost-effective, robust, and provided a good reproducibility (RSDs < 5%), and could be reused 16 times. The developed method was successfully applied for the determination of endocrine-disrupting compounds in water samples.