Determination of BPA, BPB, BPF, BADGE and BFDGE in canned energy drinks by molecularly imprinted polymer cleaning up and UPLC with fluorescence detection

- A method for detection of five bisphenols in canned energy drinks.
- Molecularly imprinted polymer cartridges were used to purify BPA and its analogues.
- UPLC with fluorescence detection used to analyze five bisphenols.
- A survey was carried out to monitor contamination by bisphenols in energy drinks.

A new method for simultaneous determination of five bisphenols in canned energy drinks by UPLC with fluorescence detection, after clean up on molecularly imprinted polymers, is herein described. The method was validated at two concentration levels, calculating trueness, repeatability and within-laboratory reproducibility, specificity, linearity of detector response, the limits of quantifications and the limits of detection for each bisphenol. The method is specific, reliable and very sensitive, allowing for determination of bisphenol F diglycidyl ether (BFDGE), bisphenol A (BPA), bisphenol B (BPB), bisphenol F (BPF) and bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (BADGE) down to 0.50 ng/mL; it was employed to determine contamination levels from these bisphenols in forty energy drinks of different brands, collected from the market in Naples. BPA was detected in 17 out of 40 samples (42.5%); in some energy drinks also BPF, BADGE and BFDGE were determined.