Validation of a modified QuEChERS method for the extraction of multiple classes of pharmaceuticals from soils

Abstract

Background The quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) method can be employed for multi-residue analyses instead of traditional extraction methods due to its advantages in terms of extraction time and required equipment. A modified version of the QuEChERS method has been developed for quantifying eight pharmaceuticals belonging to different classes in three real soils with different chemical properties. Firstly, the soils have been polluted with all contaminants and the recoveries were determined by liquid chromatography tandem–mass spectrometry. Due to similar recoveries from the three soils, the validation of the method has been carried out only on a soil by determining linearity, recovery, precision, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) values. A matrix-matched calibration for the soil has been adopted in order to avoid the matrix effect and three levels of fortification (50, 100 and 500 µg L−1) were used. Results The recovery of all pharmaceuticals, with the exception of tetracycline, from any soil was between 72 and 113%. In the validation procedure, recoveries of fortified samples ranged from 80 to 99%, the relative standard deviations ranged between 1.2 and 11.8%, and the LOQ between 20 and 36.9 μg kg−1. Conclusion The results of the present study confirmed the validity of the modified QuEChERS method for the extraction of pharmaceuticals from soils in the range 50–500 μg kg−1. Graphical Abstract

Uptake and accumulation of emerging contaminants in processing tomato irrigated with tertiary treated wastewater effluent: a pilot-scale study

“…The concentration of ECs in water samples (spiked wastewaters and leached waters) was evaluated using an online solid phase extraction (SPE) method using previously established analytical settings (UPLC-QTOF/MS/MS) (Montagna et al, 2020). To extract ECs from soils, the modified QuEChERS method (De Mastro et al, 2022b) was used. Before extracting ECs from various parts of the plant, roots were gently hand washed with tap water to remove soil residues, then rinsed with deionized water and blotted dry with a paper towel.…”

Uptake and translocation of pharmaceutically active compounds by olive tree (Olea europaea L.) irrigated with treated municipal wastewater

“…The plant organs were finely chopped with a household blender at high speed to obtain a fine-grained and homogenized material that was stored in 50-mL sterilized plastic containers at −20°C until analysis. The extraction of PhACs from soils and plant organs was performed with the QuEChERS analytical method ( De Mastro et al., 2022 ; Brunetti et al., 2023 ; De Mastro et al., 2023 ). The QuEChERS method is more advantageous than traditional extraction methods in terms of extraction time and equipment required.…”

“…In fact, wastewater reuse has several beneficial effects, such as reducing the application and cost of chemical fertilizers, conserving freshwater resources, improving crop yields, and reducing environmental impact ( Palese et al., 2009 ; Ungureanu et al., 2020 ; De Mastro et al., 2022 ; Lyu et al., 2022 ; Mininni et al., 2023 ). Although the benefits of wastewater use in agriculture are many, there are also several risks to humans and the environment related to the possible entry of contaminants and pollutants into the food chain.…”