Enrichment and detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon in tea and coffee using phenyl-functionalized NiFe2O4@Ti3C2TX based magnetic solid-phase extraction

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are commonly found in various environmental matrices and have received significant attention due to their toxic effects on ecosystems and environmental health. In this study, a specific magnetic composite material derived from MXene, known as phenyl-functionalized NiFe2O4@Ti3C2TX, was designed and synthesized using a simple method. This composite material was used to develop an effective magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) method for enriching trace polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in tea and coffee samples. The eluted PAHs were analyzed via gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Under optimal conditions, this method exhibited excellent linear relationships for 16 PAHs within the ranges of 0.001–25 and 0.0005–25 μg/L, with correlation coefficients exceeding 0.9979. The limits of detection for the target PAHs ranged from 0.1 to 0.3 ng/L. The effectiveness of the proposed method was evaluated by analyzing tea and coffee samples, and the satisfactory spiked recoveries of PAHs ranged from 84.5% to 112.6%. [Display omitted] •Phenyl functionalized NiFe2O4@Ti3C2TX nanocomposites were fabricated.•Phenyl functionalized NiFe2O4@Ti3C2TX exhibited good adsorption for target analytes.•Adsorption of targets followed pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm model.•The proposed method provided high sensitivity for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.