A NEW MIP EMBEDDED CRYOGEL FOR SELECTIVE PRE-CONCENTRATION AND REMOVAL OF PROPACHLOR

Propachlor is a pesticide commonly used in the chloroacetanilide herbicide group. Propachlor contamination occurs in groundwater resources and soil sources. Therefore removal and also the determination of trace amounts of propachlor is a very important issue. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPS) are preferred for their advantages such as high affinity, strength, and selectivity in pesticide removal and determination. In this study, MIP embedded cryogel was synthesized for selective adsorption and removal of propachlor. MIP synthesis was performed using the template molecule propachlor, functional monomer methacrylic acid, crosslinker ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDGMA), solvent hexadecane and 2,2-azo-bis-isobutyronitrile (AIBN) as the initiator. Cryogels are a good alternative for separation and purification because of their advantageous properties such as short diffusion, low pressure and adsorption and elution in a short time. The structure of MIP was determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Elemental analyze and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and the structure of MIP embedded cryogel was determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The highest adsorption capacity for MIP was 5.58 mg g -1 at pH 5. The highest adsorption capacity for MIP embedded cryogel was found to be 14.38 mg g -1 . MIP embedded cryogel were used for selective adsorption and desorption of propachlor in environmental samples. The concentration of propachlor in environmental samples was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).