Phosphorimetric detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on solid-phase extraction membranes

Solid-surface room-temperature phosphorimetry (SS-RTP) has been employed for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) adsorbed on solid-phase extraction (SPE) membranes. Three types of membranes commercially available were tested as solid substrates for phosphorescence emission. The effects of humidity and oxygen quenching were studied on SPEC(R) membranes. Calibration curves with linear dynamic ranges varying from two to three orders of magnitude were obtained in the presence of 0.05 M sodium dodecyl sulfate and 0.1 M TlNO3. The relative standard deviations of measurements varied between 5 and 10%. The absolute limits of detection were estimated at the ng to sub-ng level. On the basis of the performance of SPE membranes as solid substrates, the potential application of SPE-RTP for the analysis of PAHs is discussed.