DEVELOPMENT OF AUTOMATED GREEN SAMPLE PREPARATION METHODS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL AQUEOUS CONTAMINANTS

Abstract

This dissertation presents the developments and applications of miniaturised sample preparation methods, coupled with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for environmental analysis on emerging contaminants of concerns. They are simple, rapid, environmental-friendly and cost-effective, compared to conventional methods which require large volumes of sample and organic solvent, and intensive labour. Studies on membrane-mediated liquid-phase microextraction, such as the development of novel in-house fabricated extraction devices using polypropylene hollow fiber and membrane, and online solid-phase extraction are discussed. The thesis also focuses on the automation of these extraction techniques and subsequently, the integration of water sampling to give a totally automated analytical platform suitable for real-time monitoring of the environmental waters. This helps to provide insights on the future trend for sample preparation.