Ultrasound-Assisted Ionic Liquid Microextraction for Preconcentration of Cadmium in Water, Vegetables and Hair Samples Prior to FAAS Determination

Background: Cadmium (Cd2+) is considered to be one of the most important hazardous heavy metals due to its toxicity for living organisms at low concentration levels. Therefore, the estimation of trace Cd2+ in different types of various samples is a very important objective for chemists using effective methods. In the present work, a novel, green, easy and fast ultrasoundassisted ionic liquid-dispersive liquid phase microextraction technique (UA-IL-DLPME) was developed to preconcentrate and determine trace quantities of cadmium (Cd2+) ions from real samples, prior to detection by FAAS. Methods: The proposed technique is based on utilization of ionic liquid (IL) (1-hexyl-3- methylimidazolium tris(pentafluoroethyl)trifluorophosphate [HMIM][FAP]) as an extraction solvent for Cd2+ ions after complexation with 2-(6-methylbenzothiazolylazo)-6-nitrophenol (MBTANP) at pH 7.0. The impact of different analytical parameters on the microextraction efficiency was investigated. The validation of the proposed procedure was verified by the test of two certified reference materials (TMDA-51.3 fortified water, SRM spinach leaves 1570A) applying the standard addition method. Results: In the range of 2.0-200 μg L−1, the calibration graph was linear. Limit of detection, preconcentration factor and the relative standard deviation (RSD %, 100 μg L-1, n=5) as precision was 0.1 μg L-1, 100 and 3.1%, respectively. Conclusion: Green UA-IL-DLPME method was developed and applied to preconcentrate and determine trace quantities of Cd2+ in real water, vegetables and hair samples with satisfactory results.