Hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents for purification of water contaminated with Bisphenol-A

The occurrence of micropollutants in aquatic ecosystems poses a serious public health and environmental problem. For that purpose, the main goal of this work is the removal of an endocrine disruptor micropollutant compound, Bisphenol-A (BPA), from aqueous environments using hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (DES). In particular, DES composed of DL-Menthol or quaternary ammonium salts as hydrogen bond acceptors (HBA) and natural fatty acids as hydrogen bond donors (HBD) were prepared. Extraction efficiencies were maximized by optimizing the experimental parameters in the extraction BPA from water using a central composite design combined with a response surface methodology. Thus, the effect of several parameters, such as stirring speed, contact time, DES/water ratio and initial BPA concentration on the extraction efficiencies were evaluated. [Display omitted] •Hydrophobic DESs combining natural components were prepared.•An endocrine disruptor micropollutant is removed from aqueous environments.•All hydrophobic DESs showed promising abilities of extracting Bisphenol-A.•Hydrophobic DES can be reused for several cycles.•The process of extraction is feasible from an economical and time-consuming point of view.