Untreated and biologically cleaned industrial wastewaters
contain huge amounts of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic compounds. Due to breakthrough effects, only a few
percent of the dissolved organic carbon is usually extracted by solid-phase extraction methods. Methods for
screening analysis have not faced that problem
sufficiently
yet. To extract more hydrophilic compounds,
solid-phase
sorbent characteristics had to be evaluated in this study.
Recovery studies were carried out with 21 hydrophilic
aromatics including carboxy acids, sulfonates, aldehydes,
ketones, thiols, and phenols at a level of 1−2 μmol/L.
Both silica gel based sorbents and polymeric
materials
were tested at neutral to acidic pH values and extraction
volumes up to 200 mL. It was found that
poly(styrene−divinylbenzene) sorbents are a powerful tool for the
enrichment of hydrophilic aromatic substances. Most
of
the tested compounds could be extracted at recovery rates
of >80%. The quantitative extraction of thiols as well
as
(aminohydroxy)disulfonic acids remains an unsolved
problem. Finally, combination of different solid
sorbents
and pH changes is suggested for sequential extraction of
heavily loaded industrial wastewaters. Advantages and
limitations are discussed and an example of its usefulness
is given.