New graphene fiber coating for volatile organic compounds analysis

• A novel graphene fiber coating was prepared for the enrichment of volatile organic compounds.
• The fiber exhibited remarkable thermal and mechanical stability, long lifespan and excellent extraction efficiency.
• The simple and non-invasive method was applied successfully to human exhaled breath analysis.

In the work, a novel graphene-based solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry method was developed for the analysis of trace amount of volatile organic compounds in human exhaled breath vapor. The graphene fiber coating was prepared by a one-step hydrothermal reduction reaction. The fiber with porous and wrinkled structure exhibited excellent extraction efficiency toward eight studied volatile organic compounds (two n-alkanes, five n-aldehydes and one aromatic compound). Meanwhile, remarkable thermal and mechanical stability, long lifespan and low cost were also obtained for the fiber. Under the optimal conditions, the developed method provided low limits of detection (1.0–4.5 ng L−1), satisfactory reproducibility (3.8–13.8%) and acceptable recoveries (93–122%). The method was applied successfully to the analysis of breath samples of lung cancer patients and healthy individuals. The unique advantage of this approach includes simple setup, non-invasive analysis, cost-efficient and sufficient sensitivity. The proposed method supply us a new possibility to monitor volatile organic compounds in human exhaled breath samples.