Needle trap device packed with CS@GO aerogel for analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in air

Abstract

In this study, chitosan/graphene oxide aerogel (CS@GOA) was synthesized using a modified route of graphene oxide (GO) synthesis. The adsorbent was packed into a needle trap (NTD), introducing a novel solvent-free sampling method with direct thermal desorptionfor the analysis of polycyclic aromatic compounds (PAHs) in air. The quantitative characteristics of CS@GOA were specified using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The performance of the method was evaluated under both laboratory and field conditions, after assessing parameters like storage time, carryover effect, repeatability and reproducibility of the NTD. The optimization of injection parameters, including time and temperature, was performed using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) and Central Composite Design (CCD). The method exhibited high sensitivity with limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) ranging from 0.0004 to 0.018 ng mL⁻¹ and 0.0012 to 0.06 ng mL⁻¹, respectively. Repeatability and reproducibility of the method were obtained within the ranges of 1.5–8.74% and 2.8–14%, respectively. A correlation of R²: 0.89–0.99 was obtained between the proposed method and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH-5515) method. The chitosan/graphene oxide aerogel-packed needle found to be an affordable, easy, and reliable method for direct detection of PAHs without solvent extraction in real field samples outperforming the NIOSH method.