Miniaturized 3D printed solid-phase extraction cartridges with integrated porous frits

• Published in: Analytica chimica acta Vol. 1208; p. 339790
• Main Authors: Ren, Xinpeng, Balavandy, Sepideh Keshan, Li, Feng, Breadmore, Michael C., Maya, Fernando
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 22.05.2022
• Subjects: 3D printing; Endocrine-disrupting phenols; Porous support; Sample preparation; Solid-phase extraction; Sample preparation; Porous support; Endocrine-disrupting phenols; 3D printing; Solid-phase extraction
• ISSN: 0003-2670; 1873-4324
• DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2022.339790

Here we have studied the effect of the thickness and printing orientation using PolyJet 3D printing to fabricate single-material cartridges with built-in porous frits enabling solid-phase extraction (SPE) by packing commercial sorbents. This is achieved by tuning the degree of interpenetration of the building material and the water-soluble support material used in PolyJet 3D printing by modifying the orientation of the print head respective to the frit. SPE cartridges printed at an orientation of 30° with a 150 μm thick integrated frit were selected for the SPE experiments in a compromise between frit permeability to flow and stability to retain commercial sorbents for SPE. The performance of the 3D printed cartridges was evaluated for the SPE of the endocrine-disrupting phenols 4-tert-octylphenol (4-tOP) and 4-nonylphenol (4-NP), comparing three commercial SPE sorbents (Evolute Express ABN, Bond Elut PPL, and Silica-C18). The best overall extraction performance was obtained using Silica-C18, and the main extraction parameters were optimized. Detection limits of 0.3 μg L−1 for 4-tOP and 1.1 μg L−1 for 4-NP were achieved using HPLC-DAD for analyte separation and quantification. Enrichment factors of 30.1 (4-tOP) and 16.2 (4-NP) were obtained under the selected conditions. The developed method was applied to water and milk powder samples obtaining satisfactory recoveries ranging from 97% to 103%. These results demonstrate the suitability of PolyJet 3D printing for the fabrication of miniaturized cartridges with integrated frits for SPE applications. •Single-material 3D printed devices with integrated porous frits.•Frit porosity and stability tuned by changing the printing orientation.•Miniaturized cartridges for the preconcentration of endocrine-disrupting phenols.