Restek at RAFA 2024
5-8 November 2024
Booth 26
Prague, Czech Republic
Visit the RAFA 2024 website
Learn More About Featured Restek Products
- Raptor Biphenyl LC Columns
- Raptor Polar X LC Columns
- EZGC & EZLC Online Software Suite
- Inert LC Columns
- Nitrosamines, Alkylfurans & MCPD Reference Standards
- Topaz GC Inlet Liners
- LPGC Columns
- Rxi GC Columns
- SPME Arrows
Questions about these presentations? Contact Restek Technical Service.
VENDOR SEMINARS:
PRECISION AND INNOVATION: INERT COLUMNS IN MYCOTOXIN AND PESTICIDE ANALYSIS & AUTOMATED ALKALOID ANALYSIS IN HONEY
Thursday, November 7, 7:45-8:30 a.m.
Honey, We Shrunk the Analysis! A Case Study on the Automation and Miniaturization of the Analysis of Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids in Honey
Friedericke Habedank1 (presenter), Tina Brandscher2
1. State Office for Agriculture, Food Safety and Fisheries Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, 2. Restek Corporation
The demand for automation in laboratory processes is growing rapidly due to workforce shortages and significant advancements in robotics. Concurrently, the drive towards miniaturization poses unique challenges. Rising chemical costs and the imperative for green chemistry, such as reducing waste, underscore the need for innovative solutions.
One pertinent example is the detection of pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) in honey. The investigation of PAs in honey is crucial due to their hepatotoxic, genotoxic, and carcinogenic properties, which can pose significant health risks to consumers. As natural contaminants originating from certain plant species, PAs can enter the food supply through honey, necessitating monitoring.
In this seminar we would therefore like to present a case study and a solution for automation and miniaturization for the detection of PAs from honey.
Unlocking Precision: The Power of Inert Columns in Mycotoxin and Pesticide Analysis
Tina Brandscher
Restek Corporation
Abstract
In mycotoxin and pesticide analysis, as well as in plant toxin analysis, screening methodologies are normally used. In these multi-compound analyses, the peak form is crucial to identify and quantify your analytes of interest.
Those multi-compound screenings include a variety of chemical classes with different and sometimes difficult behaviour. For example, a lot of metal-sensitive compounds tend to interact with active spots of the metal surface in the analytical pathway of an LC instrument or are even forming chelates with these surfaces. Most of these active surfaces are in the column and not in the instrument itself, especially in the frits at the beginning and the end of the column.
In this presentation, we show the benefits of a CVD passivation technique to minimize these interactions from the beginning, making priming of the analytical system with either matrix of expensive reference standards obsolete.
POSTER PRESENTATIONS:
Highly Efficient LC-MS/MS Analysis of Multiple Mycotoxins Utilizing Biphenyl Column Selectivity with Inert Column Technology
Tina Brandscher (presenter), Jan Pschierer, Paul Connolly, Diego Lopez
Restek Corporation
Abstract
Organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) play a pivotal role in modern agriculture, aiding in pest control and enhancing crop yield. OPPs are inexpensive and efficient and account for a significant portion of pesticides used globally. Despite their benefits, these pesticides are toxic, and their extensive use raises concerns regarding environmental contamination and human health risks. Therefore, careful analysis and monitoring is necessary.
However, the analysis faces sensitivity and recovery issues due to their reactivity with metal surfaces in conventional columns, resulting in tailing peaks and low sensitivity. In this work, Restek looks to establish the benefits of coated column technologies by comparing methods developed on inert and standard stainless-steel hardware. The coating combined with our selective stationary phases resulted in exceptional analyte recoveries, lower detection limits, and better peak shape. The signal heights and areas compared to conventional columns were doubled. In addition, time-consuming conditioning and complicated passivation belong to the past.
Highly Efficient LC-MS/MS Analysis of Organophosphorus Pesticides Utilizing ARC-18 Column Selectivity with Inert Column Technology
Tina Brandscher (presenter), Hansjörg Majer, Paul Connolly, Diego Lopez
Restek Corporation
Abstract
With an ever-growing list of mycotoxins to analyse, multi-analyte methods are an attractive alternative; affording time and cost savings to laboratories. However, with a range of chemistries across the broad group of mycotoxins, this does prove a challenge. When analysed using a standard C18 column, high pH conditions are required for accurate analysis of Alternaria toxins and ergot alkaloids. These conditions typically are problematic for silica-based HPLC columns, often causing significantly reduced column lifetime. Another factor at play with some groups of mycotoxins, are nonspecific adsorption (NSA) or binding (NSB) with the metal surfaces of HPLC systems. These interactions further cause problems with peak shape, analyte sensitivity, and reproducibility from injection to injection.
In this work, Restek looks to establish the benefits of coated column technologies by comparing methods developed on inert and standard hardware to remove high pH requirements along with matrix- or chemical-based passivation techniques for a wide panel of mycotoxin analytes.
The Analysis of PFAS in Milk by LC-MS/MS
Tina Brandscher (presenter), Sandra Ruiz Perez, Jamie York
Restek Corporation
Abstract
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of manufactured organic compounds that are used for a wide array of applications and products. The environmental prevalence and bioaccumulation of these compounds can lead to contamination of produce and other commodities meant for human consumption. One potential complication of this analysis is the presence of coextractables, such as bile acids, found in the final sample. Bile acids, taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA); tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA); and taurodeoxycholic acid (TDCA) are endogenous compounds that are formed in the liver. These compounds share the same mass transition with some of the target PFAS in this method and can be detected at high concentrations in samples of animal origin. In this application, a workflow was developed for the analysis of 28 PFAS compounds in milk, resolving the target PFAS from potential bile acid interferences. To prepare samples, a QuEChERS approach coupled with dSPE was implemented. This workflow returned exceptional results for the four PFAS compounds required in the Guidance Document on Analytical Parameters for the Determination of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Food and Feed released by the European Union Reference Laboratory for Halogenated POPs in Feed and Food. Recoveries for the four main PFAS compounds ranged from 100.7–113.0% and %RSD of 2.56–16.6% with acceptable method accuracy and precision results achieved for the majority of other compounds also monitored. While detectable levels of bile acid interferences were not observed in tested milk samples, the chromatographic method developed herein is suitable to apply to other matrix samples of animal origin for the detection of PFAS compounds where high levels of bile acids may be present.
Exploration of New Low-Pressure GC Columns for Food and Environment Emerging Contaminants
Jan Pschierer (presenter), Whitney Dudek-Salisbury, Chris English
Restek Corporation
Abstract
The Low-Pressure GC (LPGC technique) has been successfully used in the past for pesticide residues’ analysis. However, the technique is very versatile, and it allows for other applications, especially if different column phases are used. So far, the majority of the applications have been using the “5”-type phase (95% dimethylpolysiloxane, 5% diphenyl polymer). To expand on the previous applications, four additional column phases were selected (cyanopropylphenyl dimethylpolysiloxane; 50% dimethylsiloxane, 50% diphenyl; 65% dimethylsiloxane, 35% diphenyl; and trifluoropropylmethyl polysiloxane phases) to analyze various food and environmental contaminants, such as nitrosamines, alkylfurans, phthalates, arylamines and fluorotelomer alcohols. The LPGC techniques provided significant reduction in run times (up to 3.3x faster runs) and helium consumption reduction (up to 81% less helium used), while keeping an acceptable resolution.