Magic extraction: solid-phase extraction and analytical pyrolysis to study polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and polychlorinated biphenyls in freshwater

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and polychlorinated biphenyls are commonly categorized as persistent organic pollutants. In order to analyze these pollutants, customized stationary phases are increasingly being developed and synthesized for solid-phase extraction. In this work, we tested a new solventless solid-phase extraction approach based on the use of a Magic Chemisorber® (Frontier Lab) which consists of a bead-covered polydimethylsiloxane stationary phase with a thickness of 500 µm. These devices are directly immersed into aqueous samples and then introduced into a pyrolysis–gas chromatography-mass spectrometry system equipped with a cryofocusing system for the thermal desorption and analysis of the adsorbed species. Our new method performs better than the most recent solid-phase extraction devices, with limits of detection lower than 2.7 ng/L and limits of quantification lower than 9.0 ng/L. The method was tested on standard compounds and on an environmental sample, showing the potential to characterize other chemical species besides the persistent organic pollutants, such as phthalate plasticizers and antioxidants. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11356-022-22435-9.