Ordered mesoporous carbon film as an effective solid-phase microextraction coating for determination of benzene series from aqueous media

The present work reports preparation of ordered mesoporous carbon (OMC) film supported on a graphite fiber as a new type of solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fiber for determination of benzene series from aqueous media. The strategy for the supported OMC film preparation was combined dipcoating technology with solvent evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) approach. A graphite fiber was immersed in an ethanol solution containing phenolic resin and Pluronic triblock copolymer. Upon solvent evaporation and subsequent pyrolysis under 700 degrees C, the phenolic resin and the surfactant self-assembled on the surface of the graphite fiber to form smooth OMC film. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nitrogen isothermal adsorption results indicate that the resultant OMC film possesses well-ordered two dimensional hexagonal mesostructure with pore diameters of 4.5 nm and BET surfaces of 630 m(2)/g. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies show the supported OMC film with thickness at 8.5 mm is continuous and defect-free. The SPME efficiency of the OMC fiber was evaluated by analysis of five benzene series (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, p-xylene and m-xylene) from water samples by gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID). The analysis results indicate that the prepared OMC fiber has wide linear ranges (0.5-500 mg/L), low detection limits (0.01-0.05 mg/L) and good repeatabilities (4.0-5.8% for one fiber, 2.9-8.7% for fiber-to-fiber). Compared with commercial counterparts, the OMC fiber exhibits improved extraction efficiency for benzene series and PAHs. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.