Capabilities and limitations of dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction with solidification of floating organic drop for the extraction of organic pollutants from water samples

Abstract Dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction with solidification of floating organic drop (DLLME-SFO) is one of the most interesting sample preparation techniques developed in recent years. Although several applications have been reported, the potentiality and limitations of this simple and rapid extraction technique have not been made sufficiently explicit. In this work, the extraction efficiency of DLLME-SFO for pollutants from different chemical families was determined. Studied compounds include: 10 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 5 pesticides (chlorophenoxy herbicides and DDT), 8 phenols and 6 sulfonamides, thus, covering a large range of polarity and hydrophobicity (Log  K ow 0–7, overall). After optimization of extraction conditions using 1-dodecanol as extractant, the procedure was applied for extraction of each family from 10-mL spiked water samples, only adjusting sample pH as required. Absolute recoveries for pollutants with Log  K ow 3–7 were >70% and recovery values within this group (18 compounds) were independent of structure or hydrophobicity; the precision of recovery was very acceptable (RSD  r 2  > 0.995). Extraction recoveries for pollutants with Log  K ow 1.46–2.8 were in the range 13–62%, directly depending on individual Log  K ow values; however, good linearity ( r 2  > 0.993) and precision (RSD  K ow  ≤ 1 (sulfa drugs), other more polar extraction solvents (ionic liquids) should be explored for highly hydrophilic pollutants.