Biohybrid adsorbent for the preconcentration of lead and Its determination in fruit Juices by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

Abstract

Background: Fruit juices are one of the most non-alcoholic beverages consumed in the world. Essential elements and other nutrientspresent in fruit juices play an important role in human well-being. However, fruit juices may also contain potentially toxic elementsat trace levels, causing health risks.Objective: The objective of this work was to develop an analytical methodology based on the preconcentration of lead using a newbiodegradable hybrid material (BHM) composed of Rhodococcus erythropolis AW3 bacteria and Brassica napus hairy roots.Methods: The BHM was implemented in an online solid-phase extraction (SPE) system for the determination of lead in fruit juices byelectrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS).Results: Effects of critical parameters on lead retention were studied. Under optimal experimental conditions, extraction efficiencyhigher than 99.9% and an enrichment factor of 62.5 were achieved. The dynamic capacity of the BHM was 36 mg/g, which favored thereuse of the column for at least eight biosorptiondesorption cycles. The LOD and LOQ for preconcentration of 5mL of sample were5.0 and 16.5 ng/L lead, respectively. The RSD was 4.8% (at 1 mg/L lead and n¼10).Conclusion: The developed method was suitable for application to lead determination in different types of fruit juice.Highlights: A novel microextraction procedure based on the use of a biohybrid adsorbent. Highly sensitive determination of Pb attrace levels. Analysis of Pb in fruit juices samples. An eco-friendly microextraction technique for Pb determination.