Eutectogel-based thin film microextraction coupled with UPLC-PDA for selective detection of diflufenican.

Authors

Ruixue Zhang, Chen Fan, Jie Li, Ran Duan

Published in

Analytica chimica acta. Volume 1425. Pages 346331. Dec 01, 2026. Epub Sep 27, 2026.

Abstract

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) pesticides remain an under-quantified source of human dietary exposure, largely due to their trace-level occurrence and the complexity of food matrices. These analytical challenges underscore the need for selective extraction approaches capable of minimizing matrix interferences.
In this work, a new thin-film microextraction (TFME) device incorporating multifunctional eutectogels was developed for the selective extraction and preconcentration of the PFAS herbicide diflufenican from food samples prior to UPLC-PDA quantification, and its performance was systematically evaluated. High-throughput screening of selectivity-enhanced deep eutectic solvents (DESs) toward diflufenican was performed using machine-learning-enhanced quantum chemical methods. Simultaneously, the eutectogel-based thin film was fabricated via UV-initiated photopolymerization of the DES, monomer, and crosslinker, yielding supramolecular gels stabilized by non-covalent interactions. The established method demonstrated excellent analytical performance, with a wide linear range (0.5-500 μg/L), a low LOD (0.04 μg/L and 0.53 μg/kg), and satisfactory recoveries (97.2-112%). Compared with the established methods, the proposed method possessed higher precision while affording a lower limit of detection and reduced hazardous reagent consumption. Mechanistic exploration corroborated by molecular simulations and multi-spectroscopic characterizations revealed that the eutectogel effectively captures diflufenican through hydrogen-bond interaction, π-π transpose, and proton-transfer inhibition, while the original DES interaction network undergoes dynamic reorganization.
The demonstrated tunability of the developed eutectogel-based thin-film microextraction device positions it as a versatile platform for the selective preconcentration of fluorinated species in complex matrices, supporting advances in the monitoring of hazardous substances in food.

PMID:
42951566
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 29 Oct 2026.

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