Effect of Organic Matter Content in Water and Sediments on the Recovery of Estrogenic Compounds Extracted by Solid-Phase Extraction and Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction

This work evaluates the effect of organic matter on the recovery of ibuprofen (IBU), naproxen (NPX), 4-n-nonylphenol (4NP), bisphenol A (BPA), 17β-estradiol (E2) and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2) in water and sediment samples. The best solid-phase extraction results were obtained with sample extractions at pH 7, and elution was performed using acetone–MeOH (3 : 2). Recoveries varied between 54.24 ± 0.86% (4NP) and 89.77 ± 5.40% (EE2). Repeatability and reproducibility were below 8.1 and 111.13% (EE2), respectively. The best ultrasound-assisted extraction results were obtained using acetone–MeOH (3 : 2) as the extraction solvent. Recoveries oscillated between 48.8 ± 8.4% (EE2) and 112.6 ± 4.3% (NPX). Repeatability and reproducibility were below 17.21 and 17.84% (BPA), respectively. The validated methods were applied to determine the effect of organic matter on recoveries in surface water and sediment samples impacted by different sources. As a result, in water samples with high organic matter content, recoveries for IBU, NPX, and EE2 increased up to 18, 11, and 22%, respectively. In sediment samples, the recovery of E2 increased up to 43%. Thus, due to the presence of organic matter in samples, it is recommended to explore organic matter content in samples before analysis to minimize errors in determined concentrations.