New methodology for a selective on-line monitoring of some polar priority industrial chemicals in waste water

A new methodology is described for the development of on-line measurements of selected hazardous polar pollutants in waste water. The on-line automated system consists of a selective solid-phase extraction in order to isolate, concentrate and clean up industrial waste water in one step followed by liquid chromatography and diode array or mass spectrometry detection. The new solid-phase extraction sorbents involve antigen–antibody interactions. Due to the high affinity and high selectivity of these interactions, extraction and clean-up of aqueous complex matrices are achieved on the same step. Therefore, chromatograms present very clean base-lines which greatly improves the detection and quantification of very polar analytes. Identification of analytes is reinforced since immunoextraction is based on a molecular structural recognition. Class-selective immunosorbents have been developed for the selective trapping of several groups of analytes structurally related such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons, benzidine and congeners, nitroaniline and aromatic amines. Comparison is given with real samples showing that most polar analytes cannot be detected at low level using conventional non-selective solid-phase extraction sorbents. Examples are presented for the determination of the two- to three-ring polyaromatic hydrocarbons as well as of basic polar industrial chemicals such as nitroaromatics and aromatic amines which are included in the US EPA or EEC priority lists of pollutants to be monitored in industrial effluents. These on-line procedures increase the speed of analysis, improve analyte delectability and can be integrated into on-site monitoring devices. ©