Low-voltage electrically-enhanced microextraction as a novel technique for simultaneous extraction of acidic and basic drugs from biological fluids

In the present work, for the first time a new set-up was presented for simultaneous extraction of acidic and basic drugs using a recent novel electrically-enhanced microextraction technique, termed electromembrane extraction at low voltages followed by high performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection. Nalmefene (NAL) as a basic drug and diclofenac (DIC) as an acidic drug were extracted from 24 mL aqueous sample solutions at neutral pH into 10 μL of each acidified (HCl 50 mM) and basic (NaOH 50 mM) acceptor solution, respectively. Supported liquid membranes including 2-nitrophenyl octyl ether containing 5% di-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate and 1-octanol were used to ensure efficient extraction of NAL and DIC, respectively. Low voltage of 40 V was applied over the SLMs during 14 min extraction time. The influences of fundamental parameters affecting the transport of target drugs were optimized using experimental design. Under optimal conditions, NAL and DIC were extracted with extraction recoveries of 12.5 and 14.6, respectively, which corresponded to preconcentration factors of 300 and 350, respectively. The proposed technique provided good linearity with correlation coefficient values higher than 0.9956 over a concentration range of 8–500 μg L−1 and 12–500 μg L−1 for NAL and DIC, respectively. Limits of detection and quantifications, and intra-day precisions (n = 3) were less than 4 μg L−1, 12 μg L−1, and 10.1%, respectively. Extraction and determination of NAL and DIC in human urine samples were successfully performed. In light of the data obtained in the present work, this new set-up for EME with low voltages has a future potential as a simple, selective, and fast sample preparation technique for simultaneous extraction and determination of acidic and basic drugs in different complicated matrices.

► A new set-up of electromembrane extraction at low voltages was designed.
► The set-up was applied for simultaneous extraction of acidic and basic drugs.
► Acidic and basic drugs were extracted into anode and cathode lumens, respectively.
► HPLC–UV was applied for separation and determination of the drugs.
► Determination of the drugs in human urine samples was successfully performed.